A judge Thursday denied release for a Canadian man accused with his brother of duping an Oregonian woman out of $230,000 worth of bitcoin currency.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Quinn Harrington told the court he was concerned Karanjit Singh Khatkar, 23, would flee to Canada and fight extradition, citing two calls from jail he placed to his brother, a co-defendant, urging him to stay out of the United States to avoid arrest in the alleged scam.

“Defendant told his brother to stay in Canada because he knows he can delay or avoid justice there,” Harrington told the court.

In one call, according to the government, Khatkar told his brother, “I have spent hours and days doing my research … I know it’s not going to be that bad as long as you don’t come right now. … If they present you with a summons, come of course.’’

Khatkar and his brother, Jagroop Singh Khatkar, are accused of wire fraud, conspiracy to commit wire fraud, aggravated identity theft, conspiracy to commit money laundering and money laundering.

Karanjit Khatkar lost his job with Fluor Corp. in Canada as an associate design engineering specialist about a month after his arrest on July 18, according to court records.

FBI agents arrested him at McCarran International Airport in Las Vegas after he arrived there from Canada. He was then returned to Oregon to face indictment.

The two brothers are accused of stealing about 23 bitcoin, worth about $140,000 at the time yet more than $250,000 today, from an Oregon woman in her 60s after they created a fake Twitter account to impersonate a bitcoin exchange.

They tricked the woman into contacting the Twitter account for support with the bitcoin exchange and accessing her account and got her to provide enough information to take over her email account. They then used access to her email to take over her accounts at bitcoin exchanges, according to prosecutors.

With access to the woman’s bitcoin exchange account, Karanjit Khatkar confirmed transfers of the woman’s bitcoin to his bitcoin exchange account at Kraken, which is based in the United States.

“After stealing the victim’s bitcoin, defendant shared the proceeds of the crime with his co-defendant brother. He immediately transferred approximately 50% of the stolen bitcoin to his brother. Over the next few months, he cashed out the remaining bitcoin in exchange for Canadian currency,” according to Harrington.

Karanjit Khatkar, 23, has pleaded not guilty to wire fraud, conspiracy to commit wire fraud, aggravated identity theft, conspiracy to commit money laundering and money laundering.

Karanjit Khatkar has pleaded not guilty to the charges.

If his brother, Jagroop Singh Khatkar, voluntarily came to the United States and appeared in court, then prosecutors would be open to Karanjit Khatkar’s pretrial release, Harrington said Thursday.

Karanjit Khatkar’s defense lawyer Justin Rusk urged the court not to penalize client because his brother hasn’t turned himself in to authorities.

Rusk said Karanjit Khatkar’s remarks to his brother from jail -- “don’t walk yourself into an arrest warrant’’ -- were reasonable in that he was suggesting his brother not follow his actions because he’d likely end up in custody indefinitely as well.

He said his client has no prior criminal history and can live with his uncle in Sacramento pending a trial in January. Having surrendered his travel documents, he couldn’t legally cross the border into Canada, unless “by foot through the woods,” Rusk said. Karanjit Khatkar also is willing to post a $50,000 surety bond to secure his release pending trial.

U.S. District Judge Michael H. Simon denied Karanjit Khatkar’s release but indicated he didn’t want the defendant to be detained before his trial “any longer than need be.’’

Trial is set for Jan. 27.

-- Maxine Bernstein

Email at mbernstein@oregonian.com

Follow on Twitter @maxoregonian

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