An attorney representing Irinia Dilkinska, who worked as “head of legal and compliance” for OneCoin, requested she be given time served for her role in the crypto scheme.
In a March 20 filing in the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York, John Buza submitted a sentencing memorandum asking a judge for leniency for Dilkinska. In November 2023, the former <a href="https://cointelegraph.com/news/onecoin-cryptoqueen-legal-chief-pleads-guilty-fraud-money-laundering" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">OneCoin compliance chief pleaded guilty</a> to one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud and one count of conspiracy to commit money laundering.
“I respectfully submits that any sentence more than time-served would be greater that necessary,” said Buza. “Ms. Dilkinska’s unique role in this case, together with the devastating situation she finds herself in all suggest that a sentence of time-served is appropriate.”
Dilkinska pleaded guilty to laundering money for OneCoin under co-founders Karl Sebastian Greenwood and Ruja Ignatova, also known as the “Cryptoqueen.” Founded in 2014, OneCoin was exposed as a fraudulent crypto scheme in 2015, defrauding investors out of roughly $4 billion.
In September 2023, Greenwood was <a href="https://cointelegraph.com/news/onecoin-co-founder-greenwood-gets-20-years-us-jail-fraud-money-laundering" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">sentenced to 20 years in prison</a> and ordered to pay $300 million in restitution to OneCoin victims. Ignatova remains at large at the time of publication.
Related: <a href="https://cointelegraph.com/news/cryptoqueen-ruja-ignatova-makes-fbi-s-ten-most-wanted-list" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">'Cryptoqueen' Ruja Ignatova makes FBI's Ten Most Wanted list</a>
According to the U.S. Justice Department, Dilkinska’s guilty plea could <a href="https://www.justice.gov/usao-sdny/pr/head-legal-and-compliance-multibillion-dollar-cryptocurrency-pyramid-scheme-onecoin" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">carry</a> a maximum potential sentence of 10 years in prison. Mark Scott, a OneCoin lawyer convicted of conspiracy to commit bank fraud and conspiracy to commit money laundering in November 2019, was <a href="https://cointelegraph.com/news/onecoin-lawyer-sentenced-prison" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">sentenced to 10 years</a>&nbsp;in January.
Dilkinska’s legal team submitted letters from friends and family before her sentencing. Buza cited her good behavior while in jail and her role as a “loving wife and mother,” claiming that any sentence above time served “would run the risk of creating a massive injustice.”
In March, Judge Edgardo Ramos <a href="https://cointelegraph.com/news/cryptoqueen-onecoin-brother-freed-three-years-jail-fraud-scheme" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">handed down a time-served sentence</a> for Konstantin Ignatov — the Cryptoqueen’s brother — after 34 months in prison. He had pleaded guilty to money laundering and fraud charges in 2019.
Magazine: <a href="https://cointelegraph.com/magazine/pink-drainer-security-researcher-steals-millions-from-participants/" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">Pink Drainer creator defends his wallet draining crypto scam kit</a>

Lawyer for Cryptoqueen’s OneCoin compliance chief asks for time served

Cointelegraph

Other articles published on Mar 21, 2024

Join our free newsletter for daily crypto updates!