US Charges Two Men With Operating $389 Million Bitcoin Laundering Service AudiA6

Jun 11, 2026

U.S. authorities charged Ukrainian Ruslan Tkachuk and Russian Alexander Ledenev with operating the AudiA6 crypto laundering service, which processed over $389 million in Bitcoin since 2021. Arrested in Georgia following a multinational investigation, the pair face extradition and up to 20 years in prison. The operation also ran the Dark2Web cybercrime forum and was described by Europol as a trusted service for ransomware gangs.

AudiA6 operator arrests

▪The two men face charges of conspiracy to launder monetary instruments and sting money laundering.
▪If convicted, each man faces a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison.
▪The U.S. Attorney's Office will seek the extradition of Tkachuk and Ledenev to the Eastern District of Pennsylvania.
▪Tkachuk is a Ukrainian national and Ledenev is a Russian national.
▪Ruslan Igorevich Tkachuk, 37, and Alexander Vladimirovich Ledenev, 25, were arrested in Batumi, Republic of Georgia, where they both reside.

International law enforcement operation

▪The investigation included six undercover operations conducted by the FBI and Secret Service between December 2022 and May 2026.
▪The arrests were part of a coordinated international takedown involving the U.S., Europol, and law enforcement from at least 10 other countries.
▪The websites for the AudiA6 service and the Dark2Web forum were replaced with law enforcement seizure banners.
▪Authorities searched three properties, froze cryptocurrency assets, blocked associated Telegram accounts, and seized digital devices.

Dark2Web forum operations

▪The operators of AudiA6 also allegedly ran a cybercrime forum known as Dark2Web.
▪On the Dark2Web forum, users could negotiate the commission of cybercrimes for pay.
▪The AudiA6 service explicitly offered to conceal cryptocurrency linked to criminal activity on the Dark2Web forum.

KuCoin laundering allegations

▪ZachXBT believes AudiA6 used KuCoin to launder funds stolen from Swissborg, LastPass users, a fake Ledger app, and the Bitcoin Depot.
▪Blockchain investigator ZachXBT alleged that AudiA6 was one of the top users of the centralized crypto exchange KuCoin for laundering funds.
▪Since 2021, the AudiA6 service accepted approximately 10,333 Bitcoin, valued at roughly $389.7 million at the time of the transactions.

Bitcoin mixing service charges

▪Europol described the AudiA6 platform as the “most trusted by ransomware gangs and cybercriminal networks.”
▪Approximately 393 Bitcoin, valued at around $19.2 million, were traced directly to known darknet markets and ransomware groups.
▪Despite promises of untraceable funds, investigators said blockchain analysis revealed the transactions could be followed through exchange records.
▪The service charged clients a fee of up to 5% per transaction, earning at least $10 million in commissions.