A Serbian man has been extradited to the United States to face charges in two separate federal indictments. Kristijan Krstic, 48, was arrested in Batumi, Georgia, and was extradited to the Northern District of Texas. He faces charges related to coordinated cryptocurrency and binary options schemes.
In the Northern District of Texas, Krstic was indicted for defrauding investors worldwide out of over $70 million through fraudulent cryptocurrency and binary options investment platforms. He and others were charged with conspiracy to commit wire fraud and conspiracy to commit money laundering.
In the Eastern District of New York, Krstic faced charges related to a cryptocurrency scheme in which he solicited U.S. investors using fraudulent online investment platforms. He was accused of founding digital-asset investment platforms, Start Options and B2G, and used an alias to communicate with investors.
In both cases, investors’ funds were allegedly never invested, but instead, were laundered internationally. Krstic is charged with various counts of fraud, securities fraud, wire fraud, and money laundering. If convicted, he faces a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison for each count.
The extradition was made possible through international cooperation, including assistance from Georgian authorities and the Republika Srpska Police. The IRS Criminal Investigation (IRS-CI) and the FBI Los Angeles Field Office conducted the investigations.