#Cryptocurrency provider sentenced#

Recently, the U.S. Department of Justice sentenced Anurag Pramod Muraka, an Indian national and international virtual currency provider, to 121 months in prison for conspiracy to commit money laundering. Muraka solicited customers through dark web advertisements and facilitated illicit funds transfers using cryptocurrencies, laundering over $20 million for criminals involved in hacking and drug trafficking. Muraka’s money laundering operation functioned as follows: customers contacted him through encrypted messaging, negotiated exchange rates, and sent cryptocurrencies to designated addresses. Muraka then used hawala operations in India to deliver cash to his employees in the U.S., who subsequently packaged and mailed the cash to the customers. Muraka charged a service fee and used a portion of it to bribe employees and co-conspirators. He knowingly laundered money for customers involved in criminal activity, thereby providing convenience to criminal enterprises. This event serves as another warning that cryptocurrency transactions pose money laundering risks, and regulators need to strengthen oversight of cryptocurrency transactions to prevent their use in illegal activities.