Jailed Fraudster Charged With Moving $290K in Forfeited Crypto From Prison in January 2024

According to a Department of Justice statement, Rossen Iossifov, a 53-year-old Bulgarian national already serving 111 months for money laundering, has been charged with conspiring to transfer $290,000 in cryptocurrency that a court had ordered him to forfeit. Prosecutors allege he executed the transfers through multiple exchanges and mixing services in January 2024 while incarcerated in federal prison. If convicted on the new charges of removing property to prevent seizure, aiding and abetting, and conspiracy to commit money laundering, he faces up to 25 additional years in prison.

Iossifov was previously convicted in 2021 for operating RG Coins, a Bulgaria-based cryptocurrency exchange, and laundering nearly $5 million as part of the Alexandria Online Auction Fraud network. That scheme defrauded over 900 American victims through fake listings on eBay and Craigslist, with proceeds funneled overseas for conversion to cash.