A U.S. grand jury indicts three Russians for operating crypto mixers Blender.io and Sinbad.io, used for laundering stolen funds.

A federal grand jury in the United States has indicted three Russian nationals for their involvement in operating cryptocurrency mixing services Blender.io and Sinbad.io

Three Russian nationals have been indicted by a U.S. grand jury for operating crypto mixers Blender.io and Sinbad.io, which were used to launder stolen funds.

According to the indictment, Roman Ostapenko, 55, Alexander Oleynik, 44, and Anton Tarasov, 32, are accused of operating the cryptocurrency mixing services, which were designed to conceal the origin of money being spent.

The services were allegedly used by cybercriminals to disguise the source of cryptocurrency obtained through illicit activities, such as ransomware attacks and other crimes that resulted in the theft of cryptocurrencies.

Blender.io was active from 2018 to 2022 and marketed itself as an anonymous cryptocurrency service that did not require registration or the collection of personal information. This made it attractive to criminals seeking to conceal their illegal activities.

After Blender.io was shut down, a similar service began operating under the brand name Sinbad.io.

The U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) noted that the mixers facilitated illicit revenue generation for hackers, including state-sponsored North Korean groups, and were sanctioned by the U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) for providing money laundering services to ransomware gangs and other criminals.

Ostapenko is charged with conspiracy to commit money laundering and operating an unlicensed money transmitting business, while Tarasov and Oleynik are each charged with conspiracy to commit money laundering and operating an unlicensed money transmitting business.

Oleynik and Ostapenko were arrested on December 1, 2024, but Tarasov remains at large.

The case highlights the U.S. government’s efforts to disrupt the infrastructure used by cybercriminals. The DOJ acknowledged the international cooperation in the investigation, including support from law enforcement agencies in the Netherlands, Australia, Finland, and other countries.

The U.S. Department of Justice’s National Cryptocurrency Enforcement Team also assisted the FBI in the investigation.

It's important to note that the indictment is merely an accusation, and the defendants are presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty in a court of law.