Federal prosecutors unsealed criminal charges on Wednesday against two men accused of operating AudiA6, a cryptocurrency laundering service that processed more than $389 million in transactions since 2021. Ruslan Igorevich Tkachuk, 37, a Ukrainian national, and Alexander Vladimirovich Ledenev, 25, a Russian national, were arrested the same day in Batumi, Georgia, and each faces one count of conspiracy to launder monetary instruments and one count of sting money laundering. The charges stem from an international investigation into AudiA6's alleged role in concealing cryptocurrency traced to darknet markets, ransomware organizations, and other illicit sources, reflecting ongoing U.S. law enforcement efforts to disrupt cryptocurrency-based financial crime infrastructure.
DOJ Charges Tkachuk and Ledenev with Money Laundering Conspiracy
The U.S. Attorney's Office for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania announced the charges on Thursday. According to the criminal complaint, Tkachuk and Ledenev are senior members of the AudiA6 organization and await extradition from Georgia. Each defendant is charged with one count of conspiracy to launder monetary instruments and one count of sting money laundering.
AudiA6 Advertised Services on Dark2Web Cybercrime Forum
The criminal complaint alleges that Tkachuk and Ledenev manage the Dark2Web cybercrime forum, where AudiA6 advertised its laundering services. A Dark2Web advertisement quoted in the complaint offered to conceal and disguise the source of any customer's cryptocurrency that would otherwise be traceable to criminal sources, for a fee of up to 5% of the amount being laundered.
Blockchain Analysis Reveals 10,333 BTC Deposited Since 2021
Through blockchain analysis, law enforcement determined that approximately 10,333 bitcoins had been deposited into AudiA6's cryptocurrency wallets since the service launched in 2021. Of that total, approximately 393.39 BTC arrived directly from known darknet markets, ransomware organizations, cybercrime services and other illicit sources. The remaining funds were deposited indirectly from illicit sources.
Multi-Agency Coalition Conducts Searches and Asset Seizures
The U.S. Attorney's office stated that the operation was conducted as a joint task involving the U.S. Secret Service, Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigation, Europol and Eurojust. The international coalition also included law enforcement partners from Australia, Canada, France, Georgia, Germany, Iceland, Japan, Poland, Switzerland and the United Kingdom. The joint action included searches of three properties, the targeting of servers and domains across the United States, Iceland, Germany and France, the blocking of Telegram accounts used by the network and the freezing of cryptocurrency assets alongside the seizure of digital devices. The clear web and dark web infrastructure associated with AudiA6 and the Dark2Web forum were replaced with law enforcement seizure banners.
FAQ
What did the DOJ charge Tkachuk and Ledenev with on Wednesday?
The U.S. Attorney's Office for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania charged Ruslan Igorevich Tkachuk and Alexander Vladimirovich Ledenev with one count of conspiracy to launder monetary instruments and one count of sting money laundering in connection with their alleged operation of the AudiA6 cryptocurrency laundering service.
How much cryptocurrency did AudiA6 process since 2021?
According to blockchain analysis conducted by law enforcement, approximately 10,333 bitcoins were deposited into AudiA6's cryptocurrency wallets since the service launched in 2021, representing more than $389 million in total transactions. Of this amount, approximately 393.39 BTC came directly from known darknet markets, ransomware organizations, cybercrime services and other illicit sources.
Which agencies participated in the AudiA6 investigation?
The operation was conducted by a joint task force involving the U.S. Secret Service, Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigation, Europol and Eurojust, with law enforcement partners from Australia, Canada, France, Georgia, Germany, Iceland, Japan, Poland, Switzerland and the United Kingdom.
