The main defendant in the case of the creation of payment system Liberty Reserve, a native of Ukraine 40-year-old Arthur Budovsky, extradited to the United States, reports the BBC. On Friday afternoon, he was taken under escort to New York. Budovsky arrested in Spain in May 2013 and extradited to the US.

The investigation calls Liberty Reserve illegal virtual currency exchange, which used the services of the criminal world.

According to US Attorney for the Southern District of New York Preet Bharara, Tuesday Budovsky first brought before a judge Denise Cote engaged in business e-payment system.

It appears from court documents released on Thursday in Seattle, one of the clients was allegedly Liberty Russian Roman Seleznev previously extradited to the United States from the Maldives.

According to prosecutors, about 10 years ago Budovsky, also known as Arthur Belanchuk and Eric Paltz, headed to New York, the other payment system, which was called the Gold Age Inc. and used a digital exchange E-Gold.

This project was unsuccessful. In 2006 Budovsky, received by the time a US citizen, was convicted of the packThe pressure of illegal money transfer company without a license. The following year, the owners of Gold Age were prosecuted for money laundering and a number of other criminal offenses, and the company has ceased to exist.

Next Budovsky, according to prosecutors, determined to start a new digital currency anywhere outside the US jurisdiction and emigrated to Costa Rica, where he founded the Liberty Reserve. In 2011, he renounced American citizenship, US immigration authorities explaining that the software that his company is developing, can do in America, the subject of lawsuits, and he wants to avoid this de.

Budovsky took Costa Rican citizenship, which would have saved him from extradition to the United States, if he did not fly to Spain.

Liberty Reserve advertised itself as the "largest online billing system and the transfer of money." According to the prosecutors, in total, the company laundered about $ 6 billion. The number of its customers around the world reached 1 million.

According to prosecutors, Liberty was "a favorite bank of the criminal world, as provided infratrukturu that allowed cybercriminals to carry out anonymous and without a trace financial transactions. "

As stated in court documents, it was designed to ensure that allow customers to "anonymously to make illegal transactions and launder the proceeds of their crimes ... From beginning to end Budovsky in charge of operations of Liberty Reserve, its finance and corporate strategy."

May 28 last year, the US authorities have officially brought to trial seven heads and employees of the company. Four of them - Vladimir Kats, Azzeddin Amin, Mark and Maksim Marmilev Chukharev - have pleaded guilty and are awaiting sentencing. Two openly live in Costa Rica.