Holland financial crime inspectors arrested a 26-year-old man on Monday due to his involvement in the ZKasino altcoin project, which defrauded investors last month. The arrest includes serious allegations such as fraud, embezzlement, and money laundering. Let’s look into the details of the incident.
Search Conducted at ZKasino Suspect’s Home
The Netherlands Financial Information and Investigation Service (FIOD) stated that inspectors conducted a search at the suspect’s home and seized various assets. These assets include physical and digital records, real estate, and cryptocurrencies. The total value of these assets is 11.4 million euros, equivalent to 12.2 million dollars, and they form an important part of the investigation.
FIOD also mentioned the possibility of more arrests related to ZKasino and emphasized that the investigation is ongoing. Although it is said that the suspect was part of the ZKasino team, no clear information was provided about how he was involved in the project.
ZKasino, which started as a decentralized gambling platform, suddenly changed its token usage policies during the launch. This change prevented investors from reclaiming the bridged ETHs initially promised by the team. During the launch, more than 10,000 investors had deposited over $33 million in cryptocurrencies into ZKasino, leading them to claim that the project was a fraud.
Commitments Not Fulfilled
FIOD stated that despite promising investors they could reclaim their investments within 30 days, this commitment was not fulfilled. According to authorities, the fact that the smart contract was technically not designed for reversibility on the Blockchain indicates that this situation could point to a fraud method known as “rug pull.”
Additionally, it was noted that the suspect was interrogated by a magistrate on Thursday and his detention was extended for two weeks. Recall that last month, ZKasino converted over $30 million of Ethereum into ZKAS tokens without users’ consent.
We occasionally witness such fraudulent activities in the cryptocurrency world. A report on fraud activities was released recently, stating that losses from cryptocurrency-focused fraud activities in April had decreased to $25.7 million, the smallest figure since 2021.
