Crypto founder of US-based crypto payments platform, 38-year-old Lurii Gugnin has been arrested and charged with money laundering by prosecutors in Brooklyn. According to authorities, Gugnin ran a global laundering network that moved over $530 million for Russia’s sanctioned banks and companies.
Gugnin, who lives in Manhattan, was arrested and charged to court on Monday, with the judge ordering a remand till when his trial commences. According to the 22-count indictment, Gugnin ran the operation through his two companies, Evita Investments and Evita Pay, while hiding the source, flow, and purpose of the funds.
Prosecutors also mentioned that between June 2023 and January 2025, he moved payments for clients tied to banned firms, using a mix of US banks and crypto exchanges, mostly moving the money through USDT, a stablecoin tied to the dollar and developed by Tether.
Crypto founder lied about his operations
Officials of the Department of Justice alleged that Gugnin’s clients were made up of institutions under US sanctions, including Sberbank, VTB Bank, Sovcombank, Tinkoff, and Rosatom, Russia’s state-run nuclear energy firm. The wallets used were also not random, showing relations to the Kremlin’s financial and tech backbone. Prosecutors say the crypto founder helped them get around restrictions by faking compliance documents, lying to banks, and hiding ties to Russia.
Gugnin was also accused of using shell companies and fake records to make payments look clean. He allegedly rewrote over 80 invoices, digitally removing any trace of the Russian entities involved. The goal was simple: get the money past U.S. systems without anyone catching on. Officials also said Gugnin helped them buy restricted American technology, with a server covered by anti-terrorism export laws landing in the hands of a Russian client thanks to his operation.
Assistant Attorney General Matthew Olsen said, “The defendant is charged with turning a cryptocurrency company into a covert pipeline for dirty money, moving over half a billion dollars through the U.S. financial system to aid sanctioned Russian banks and help Russian end-users acquire sensitive U.S. technology.”
Gugnin knew he was probably being looked into, with the feds saying he searched online for phrases like “how to know if there is an investigation against you” and “money laundering penalties US” before his arrest, showing he expected federal heat. And he wasn’t just moving cash. Officials say he kept up direct ties with Russia’s intelligence service and with Iranian officials. Neither country sends people back to the U.S. when wanted.
Despite being looked into for his involvement in a billion-dollar laundering case, Gugnin was living a life of luxury in New York. In the fall of 2024, the Wall Street Journal featured him in a story about rich renters. He was paying $19,000 a month for a luxury Manhattan apartment. According to the Justice Department, if he is convicted of bank fraud alone, he could get 30 years in prison. But if the court finds him guilty on all 22 charges, his total sentence could be stacked into a prison term longer than a human life. He has not entered a plea yet and is being held without bond as he waits for his next court date.