A suspected spy from Russia, arrested in Brazil by federal police, confessed to authorities that he worked with bitcoin and even moved large amounts of money in Brazilian cryptocurrency brokerages.
In a trial that Livecoins accessed, the accused of committing espionage in Brazil was caught on his return from the Netherlands, after the European country denied him entry and accused the accused of using false documents.
He is currently imprisoned in federal prison in the Federal District, charged with using false documents, espionage and money laundering. The case is in the hands of the counterintelligence division of the Brazilian Federal Police.
Possible Russian spy moved bitcoin at “official brokers” in Brazil
Sergey Vladimirovich Cherkasov, a Russian citizen who has been using a false identity of a Brazilian in recent years, has been imprisoned in Brazil since 2022 and awaits definitions of his future.
Mainly charged with committing document forgery crimes, he claimed in court that he bought cheap bitcoin early in the digital currency’s history and earned large profits in his position.
In addition, he confessed in conversations with Brazilian detectives that he is not a Russian spy, and that he is engaged in the purchase and sale of bitcoin.
In doing so, he went so far as to state that his bitcoin operations only work on official brokers, having moved values across platforms in Brazil and the US.
However, it caught the attention of the Brazilian judiciary that the Russian did not prove his work with the purchase and sale of bitcoin with documents. As a result, the case is still under investigation and some linked portfolios found by the PF are under investigation.
Information from Rodrigo Rangel’s column, published in Metrópoles in 2022, indicated that the CIA was trying to use the espionage case to undermine Brazil’s relationship with Russia. In any case, the case will continue under the watchful eye of Brazilian diplomacy.
US court condemned Russian arrest in Brazil
On March 24, 2023, the US justice department published a complaint against the Russian arrested in Brazil, alleging that he had committed fraud and espionage in that country in 2018.
At the time, Sergey Vladimirovich Cherkasov, posing as “Victor Muller Ferreira”, entered the US to attend graduate school at University 1, in Columbia (USA).
U.S. prosecutors, posing as a Brazilian, allege that the Russian spied on the country from 2018 to May 2020, when he completed his studies and left the country. According to the US lawyer, foreign adversaries who want to spy on the US will be tracked down and prosecuted.
“If foreign adversaries, such as Russia, send undercover agents to the United States, we will track them down and prosecute them to the fullest extent of the law. These adversaries are attempting to operate in covert ways to undermine our national security in ways that could jeopardize the security of our citizens. With our partners at the FBI, we will root out and bring to justice anyone who seeks to harm the United States.”
However, the indictment does not clarify whether the US justice intends to request the extradition of the Russian to the country, so that he will respond to the indictment.
Minister Edson Fachin, of the STF, agreed to the Russian government’s request to extradite a suspect, following investigations into crimes in Brazil
In a decision by the Supreme Federal Court (STF), Minister Edson Fachin analyzed an extradition request from the Russian government.
In the document Livecoins had access to, the Russian government says the suspect is a fugitive from the country who sold drugs in Moscow in 2011 and participated in a criminal organization in the country.
In a meeting with the Russian government via Zoom, accompanied by a Brazilian public defender, the suspect admitted the crimes committed in his country of origin and agreed to be extradited to Russia.
For example, Minister Edson Fachin maintained the arrest of Serguei Vladimirovich Cherkasov, but after his crimes in Brazil come to an end, he may be extradited to Russia.
Despite the partially granted request to the government of Russia, the suspected espionage in Brazil continues to be arrested in the DF and investigated by the PF.
Source: Live Coins
Barry Siefert is an accomplished journalist and author at The Nation View. He is known for his expertise in the field of cryptocurrency, and has written extensively on the topic. With a background in finance and economics, Barry has a deep understanding of the underlying technology and market forces that drive the crypto industry.
