Share this article

Cryptocurrency Worth $1.5M Seized From Former Ukrainian Head of State Communications

The seizure was supported by the Supreme Anti-Corruption Court in Ukraine.

Updated Mar 8, 2024, 5:55 p.m. Published Dec 1, 2023, 5:05 p.m.

The National Anti-Corruption Bureau of Ukraine (NABU) has seized $1.5 million worth of cryptocurrency from Yuriy Shchigol, Ukraine's former head of the State Special Communications Service, according to local news outlet RBC.

The seizure, which involved $1.2 million worth of tether [USDT] and 6.9 bitcoin [BTC], was supported by the Supreme Anti-Corruption Court in Ukraine.

STORY CONTINUES BELOW

Don't miss another story.Subscribe to the Crypto for Advisors Newsletter today. See all newsletters

By signing up, you will receive emails about CoinDesk products and you agree to our terms of use and privacy policy.

Schigol and his deputy, Viktor Zhor, allegedly siphoned state money allocated to purchasing equipment and software before converting the proceeds to cryptocurrency.

The scheme was facilitated by several companies that attempted to keep the crypto conversions a secret.

Shchigol has reportedly been taken into custody as a preventative measure, law enforcement said.

In 2020, Ukrainian police arrested a hacker accused of selling personal data, including crypto wallet information. Two years before that, police swooped in and arrested four Ukrainian citizens for operating a fraudulent crypto exchange.

Ukraine Crime Corruption

Oliver Knight

Oliver Knight is the co-leader of CoinDesk data tokens and data team. Before joining CoinDesk in 2022 Oliver spent three years as the chief reporter at Coin Rivet. He first started investing in bitcoin in 2013 and spent a period of his career working at a market making firm in the UK. He does not currently have any crypto holdings.