Bitzlato Crypto Exchange Founder Gets No More Jail Time in $700 Million Scam

The Russian founder of the Bitzlato cryptocurrency exchange was sentenced to the 18 months he’d already served behind bars in the US for operating an unlicensed money-transmitting business that masked the proceeds of illegal gambling and drug deals valued at more than $700 million.

Anatoly Legkodymov, who had been in federal custody since his January 2023 arrest, was sentenced to time served Thursday by US District Judge Eric Vitaliano in Brooklyn, New York. Legkodymov, who pleaded guilty in December, admitted knowing for years that Bitzlato was being used as a conduit for transactions tied to the dark web, including the notorious drug bazaar Hydra Market, which was shut down by authorities in 2022.