AudiA6 operators charged in U.S. over alleged $389m crypto laundering network
Federal prosecutors have charged two alleged operators of a cryptocurrency laundering service that processed more than $389 million in transactions and received over 10,000 Bitcoin since launching in 2021.
- U.S. prosecutors charged two alleged AudiA6 operators after tracing more than $389 million in cryptocurrency transactions through the laundering service.
- Authorities said the network received over 10,000 Bitcoin since 2021, including funds linked to darknet markets, ransomware groups and cybercrime services.
- An international operation led to arrests in Georgia, server seizures across multiple countries, and the freezing of cryptocurrency assets.
According to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania, Ukrainian national Ruslan Igorevich Tkachuk, 37, and Russian national Alexander Vladimirovich Ledenev, 25, were arrested in Batumi, Georgia, on Wednesday and are awaiting extradition to the United States.
The criminal complaint accuses the pair of serving as senior members of AudiA6, a cryptocurrency laundering network that prosecutors say helped customers conceal the origins of digital assets linked to criminal activity. Prosecutors also allege that both men managed the Dark2Web cybercrime forum, where AudiA6 promoted its services to users seeking to move illicit funds through cryptocurrency.
Court documents cited by the U.S. Attorney’s Office state that an advertisement posted on Dark2Web offered to disguise the source of traceable cryptocurrency in exchange for fees of up to 5% of the amount being laundered.
Blockchain analysis conducted during the investigation found that approximately 10,333 Bitcoin had been deposited into wallets controlled by AudiA6 since 2021, according to prosecutors.
Authorities said about 393.39 BTC came directly from known darknet marketplaces, ransomware groups, cybercrime services and other identified illicit sources, while the remaining deposits were traced indirectly to criminal activity.
International operation targets laundering infrastructure
Details released by prosecutors show the arrests formed part of a coordinated operation involving the U.S. Secret Service, Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigation, Europol and Eurojust, alongside law enforcement agencies from Australia, Canada, France, Georgia, Germany, Iceland, Japan, Poland, Switzerland and the United Kingdom.
Investigators carried out searches at three properties and targeted servers and domains located across the United States, Iceland, Germany and France. Authorities also blocked Telegram accounts allegedly used by the network, froze cryptocurrency assets and seized electronic devices linked to the investigation.
At the same time, law enforcement agencies replaced both the clear web and dark web infrastructure connected to AudiA6 and the Dark2Web forum with seizure notices.
For Tkachuk and Ledenev, prosecutors have filed one count of conspiracy to launder monetary instruments and one count of sting money laundering. The charges remain allegations, and both defendants are presumed innocent unless proven guilty in court.
The case adds to a series of enforcement actions targeting cryptocurrency laundering services and darknet-linked funds. In May, the U.S. Department of Justice charged German citizen Owe Martin Andresen over an alleged laundering scheme tied to Dream Market, a darknet marketplace that ceased operations in 2019.
According to the DOJ, Andresen allegedly moved funds from dormant Dream Market administrator wallets before converting part of the proceeds into gold bars.
Prosecutors in that case said more than $2 million was laundered between August 2023 and April 2025, while searches uncovered approximately $1.7 million in gold bars and information linked to crypto wallets and bank accounts holding another $1.2 million in suspected proceeds.
