Key facts
- A former Polish police officer, Artur K., has been charged with organized crime membership, fraud, and money laundering.
- The charges are linked to the collapse of the cryptocurrency exchange Zondacrypto.
- Investigators are searching a fuel depot where Zondacrypto founder Sylwester Suszek was last seen before vanishing in March 2022.
- Artur K. faces charges including membership of an organized criminal group and aiding the misappropriation of entrusted property.
- At least five other individuals have been charged in the case since August.
- Zondacrypto, formerly BitBay, claimed 1.3 million clients before freezing withdrawals and having its license revoked in Estonia.
Polish prosecutors have charged a former police officer, identified as Artur K., with organized crime membership, fraud, and money laundering in connection with the collapse of the Zondacrypto exchange. Investigators are also searching a fuel depot where the exchange's founder, Sylwester Suszek, was last seen before disappearing in March 2022.
Artur K., a former police officer, was detained by officers from the Central Bureau for Combating Cybercrime on Tuesday. The National Prosecutor's Office organized crime department stated he faces charges including membership of an organized criminal group and causing property damage on a great scale to BitBay, BB Trade Estonia, and a third entity, aiding the misappropriation of entrusted property, aiding computer fraud, and money laundering. A search of his home reportedly uncovered documentation related to the exchange's operations.
Police from Katowice are currently searching and examining a fuel depot where Suszek was last seen. The case is being treated as an unlawful deprivation of liberty. Suszek founded the exchange in 2014 as BitBay, later moving its registration to Estonia in 2020 under BB Trade Estonia and rebranding as Zondacrypto, claiming 1.3 million clients. The exchange froze withdrawals in April, and Estonia's financial intelligence unit revoked its operator's license on June 29.
At least five other individuals have been charged in the case since August, including Radosław P., the former head of the Polish Olympic Committee. Those who have responded publicly have denied the charges, and none of the allegations have been tested in court.