Greek authorities have uncovered a plan to kill former BTC e-stock exchange operator Alexander Vinnik. Vinnik has been imprisoned in Greece for almost a year. US prosecutors accuse him money laundering worth billions. In the Mt.Gox case, he is one of the main suspects.

Greek law enforcement agencies have information that Alexander Vinnik should be the victim of a poison assassination. The prison head and the public prosecutor of the city of Thessaloniki informed the Russian citizen about the murder plans. This is reported by the Russian news agency Sputnik , citing a source from the authorities. Vinnik is now under increased security observation and may no longer accept food or other items from unknown persons.

According to the unknown source, the perpetrators began with the assassination plans after a Greek court blocked Vinnik's extradition to the US. Someone in Russia had given the order to kill. There are people who are extremely interested in not letting him get there. However, according to Sputnik no intelligence agencies of any states are involved in the perpetrators are to be sought in the criminal milieu.

Is Vinnik the mastermind behind Mt.Gox?

Alexander Vinnik has been detained in Greece since July 2017. Just days before, US authorities shut down its crypto-trading platform BTC-e. They accuse him of crypto-money laundering in the amount of four billion US dollars. This would be the largest sum ever found for this crime. Overall, he faces 21 charges, including hacking and drug trafficking. There are many indications that he was involved in the Mt.Gox hack. For example, investigators have shown cash flows from Mt.Gox to Vinnik's personal wallet and to BTC-e .

Initially unwilling to be guilty , he is now apparently ready to testify in a Greek court about financial crime. Whether it comes to that, however, is unclear. Both Russia and the US are demanding the extradition of Vinnik. In October, two Greek courts ruled on this issue, one in favor of Russia, one in favor of the US. The Greek Supreme Court ruled that Vinnik should go to the United States. The defendant's lawyer has now announced that he will bring the case to the European Court of Human Rights. The chaos around Alexander Vinnik continues.