Tatyana Moskalkova, the Commissioner for Human Rights in Russia, has called for the extradition of the former purported BTC-e operator. BTC-e, a Bitcoin exchange, was seized by the U.S Department of Justice due to money laundering claims.

The commissioner is requesting Michalis Kalogirou, the Minister of Justice, Transparency and Human Rights of Greece, to extradite the BTC-e operator, Alexander Vinnik, to Russia so that he can get medical attention since he “is on the verge of death” and be charged with fraud.

In a letter, Tatyana wrote:

I appeal to you, Mr. Minister, with a request to extradite Alexander Vinnik, a citizen of the Russian Federation, against whom a criminal case was opened in the Russian Federation, in a difficult marital status and state of health, to the Russian Federation for further investigation of his case.

Vinnik was arrested in 2017 in Greece where he was on vacation with his family. In November 2018, the BTC-e operator decided to go on a hunger strike for him to receive a fair trial. Vinnik has now reportedly lost roughly 30 percent in weight and he may die if he does not receive medical attention.

According to the United States Department of Justice, the BTC-e operator has been using Bitcoin to launder approximately 4 billion U.S dollars in a span of 6 years. Apart from the U.S and Russia, France also accused the BTC-e operator of defrauding people in 6 French cities.

According to a Russian news outlet, TASS, the BTC-e operator:

Is on a hunger strike in prison against the arbitrariness of the court, calling himself a political prisoner and demanding that Greek authorities allow him to return to his homeland.

Do you think the disagreements between French, Russian and U.S governments are the cause of Vinnik’s predicament rather than Vinnik’s alleged crime?

Let us know your thoughts in the comments section below.