Russia Begins Liquidating Bitcoin Seized from Corruption
Conviction
$BTC The Russian authorities have started the process of liquidating
part of the over 1,000 bitcoins (BTC) confiscated from Marat Tambiev, a former investigator convicted of bribery. Tambiev, who was convicted for accepting bribes, had the bitcoins seized in 2023 following an order by the Moscow Nikulinsky District Court.
In addition to the cryptocurrency assets, the Russian government also seized real estate properties in Moscow as part of the broader enforcement actions against Tambiev. According to reports, Tambiev had received the seized bitcoin from the notorious Infraud Organization in 2022, in exchange for not seizing their assets. Tambiev is currently serving a 16-year sentence for his involvement in the bribery scandal, which has been one of the most significant of its kind in recent Russian history.
However, liquidating the seized bitcoins has proved to be more complicated. Tambiev had divided the bitcoin holdings into smaller portions, making the liquidation process more legally complex. To liquidate all the coins, Russian bailiffs need to obtain several court rulings. Thus far, Russian authorities have been granted permission to sell $10 million worth of bitcoin, and prosecutors are pushing to liquidate more of the seized cryptocurrency.
In related developments, one of Tambiev’s accomplices, Kristina Lyakhovenko, was sentenced to nine years in a general regime penal colony, while another co-defendant, Dmitry Gubin, is on
the run and has been added to Russia’s most wanted list.
#Bitcoin #CryptoLaw #Russia #SeizedAssets #ByCoin2024