An Israeli-Russian subject was arrested last week while he reportedly tried to flee Israel under a false identity, and is now confronted with extradition to the US in connection with a large crypto hack that caused nearly $ 190 million damage.
Alexander Gurevich was custody on 1 May at Ben-Gurion Airport just before he boarded a flight to Russia, local media reported.
Authorities said he had legally changed his name and received a new passport the day before his arrest. He is accused of stealing millions in digital assets of a crypto company established in the US in 2022 and then tries to extort a reward.
Hackers demand
American federal public prosecutors claim that Gurevich has exploited a vulnerability in a blockchain platform that is known as Nomad on 1 August 2022, with around $ 2.89 million in Crypto. Others later operated the error, which led to total losses of around $ 190 million.
After the incident, Gurevich reportedly contacted the Chief Technology Officer of Nomad via coded Messages apps, admitted to the theft and brought around $ 162,000 back to stolen tokens.
It is said that he also asked for a reward of $ 500,000 in exchange for details about how vulnerability was discovered. However, when the company prevented a smaller offer, equal to 10% of the amount he had withdrawn, Gurevich cut off communication and disappeared.
San Francisco’s field office of the FBI later opened a criminal investigation, which led to an indictment of eight counts filed in August 2023 in the northern district of California.
Costs include wire fraud, money laundering and transport of stolen ownership. If convicted, Gurevich could be sentenced to 20 years in prison for the most serious violations.
Escapes attempt to thwart
Gurevich came back to Israel on 19 April during the Passo holiday and was immediately ordered by the authorities to appear before a hearing.
However, Gurevich ignored the summons and legally changed his name in the population register in ‘Alexander Block’. He then applied for a new passport and tried to flee to Russia on 1 May after securing.
He was arrested just before departure and appeared the next day in the court in handcuffs. Officers of the judiciary of the state lawyer have submitted a formal request to declare him extradition on 2 May.
Judge Einat Avman-Moller ordered Gurevich to stay in custody before a planned hearing. The public defender’s office represented him during the hearing. Israeli authorities involved in the operation include the National Fraud Unit and the Fraud Division of Tel Aviv.
Because Gurevich did not live in Israel when the alleged crimes were committed, it is unlikely that he is a punishment in Israel if he is convicted abroad.
