U.S., Russia fight over ‘brain’ of bitcoin crime suspect Vinnik
The alleged Russian mastermind of a $4 billion digital money laundering scheme sits in an Athens prison cell as Washington and Moscow “fight over his brain,” according to international illicit finance analysts.
But in a behind-the-scenes extradition drama last week that observers say recalls Cold War intrigue over cryptology, Russian and U.S. officials scrambled in a diplomatic fight for the mysterious 37-year-old’s secrets.
American authorities seek to bring Mr. Vinnik from Greece to the U.S. to learn how he might have worked his schemes, who his partners might have been and, most important, whose money he might have helped hide. Russia, however, would rather get Mr. Vinnik to Moscow to keep his innovative tactics and network to themselves.
“Everyone is worrying about the unknowns,” said Boris Zilberman, a Russia analyst with the Foundation for the Defense of Democracies. “And the murkiest questions is — the $4 billion that he was laundering — who and what were involved? If you’re taking the more conspiratorial viewpoint, you ask, are the Russians afraid of Vinnik turning that information over to the U.S.?”
Add to the mix the strained geopolitics between Washington and Moscow over Russia’s ever-expanding cyberwar capabilities. Across Capitol Hill, where multiple probes explore suspected Kremlin efforts to influence the U.S. presidential election, concerns about Russia — especially when it comes to the internet — are at an all-time-high.
