A Russian official, Marat Tambiev, has been detained for having about $24 million worth of Bitcoin (BTC). The bribes were reportedly received from the hacking group Infraud Organization.
Before being sacked for corruption, Tambiev headed the investigation division for the Tverskoy district in Moscow. During a search of his Moscow apartment, police found 1032.1 BTC on his laptop in a folder named “pension.” The detectives seized his possessions, including the BTC. Authorities claim that Tambiev made less than $150,000 over the course of his employment. The Bitcoin (BTC), which now has a market worth of $27.6 million, “indicates the receipt of property from sources not provided for by law.”
Tambiev allegedly accepted the money on April 7, 2022, from Infraud Organization. In return, Tambiev would not take the unlawful assets belonging to the group, which he was investigating.
However, Tambiev refuted the accusations of corruption. Instead, he filed a lawsuit against the Investigative Committee for a continuing inquiry and unsubstantiated charges. Tambiev’s claim, however, was dropped after a departmental audit made his violations clear.
Russia’s new found love of Bitcoin
Russia has begun opening its doors to crypto after Western sanctions made it very difficult for the country to trade.
One of the most known financial organizations in the Russian Federation, Rosbank, will soon provide cross-border cryptocurrency transactions. Rosbank is working with the Russian fintech company B-Crypto in order to provide this service. The bank made a point of stating that these transactions adhere to all applicable legal requirements, Central Bank regulations, and the bank’s internal compliance policy.
It is not easy to pay overseas vendors in crypto. According to the procedure, Russian firms may choose to pay for imported goods or services using crypto after making arrangements with the supplier and identifying the wallet from which it will make the payment. The supplier then sends out an invoice with the due payment and its receiving wallet address.