PHILADELPHIA — Federal prosecutors have charged two Eastern European nationals with operating an international cryptocurrency mixing service and cybercrime platform that allegedly laundered nearly $389 million in Bitcoin over five years, part of a coordinated multinational law enforcement operation that dismantled the group's infrastructure across multiple continents.

Ruslan Igorevich Tkachuk, 37, a Ukrainian national, and Alexander Vladimirovich Ledenev, 25, a Russian national, were arrested in Batumi, Georgia, where both reside. Each faces one count of conspiracy to launder monetary instruments and one count of sting money laundering, charges that carry a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison.

The men were senior members of an organization known as AudiA6, which ran a cryptocurrency mixing service and managed a cybercrime forum called Dark2Web, where users could negotiate paid commissions for various illegal activities. Since launching in 2021, AudiA6 accepted approximately 10,333 Bitcoin, valued at roughly $389.7 million at the time of the transactions, earning at least $10 million in commission fees by charging clients up to 5% per transaction.

Scope of the Alleged Operation

Of the funds processed, approximately 393 Bitcoin, valued at around $19.2 million, were traced directly to known darknet markets, ransomware groups and other illicit sources, with additional funds flowing indirectly from criminal actors. Prosecutors allege that despite AudiA6's promises of untraceable mixing, blockchain analysis allowed investigators to follow transactions through exchange records.

The case was built in part on six undercover operations conducted between December 2022 and May 2026. FBI and Secret Service agents posed as criminals seeking to launder proceeds from scams and narcotics sales. In one exchange, an AudiA6 operator responded to an agent asking whether stolen Bitcoin was acceptable by saying........

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