Suspect behind ZKasino scam arrested in the Netherlands, Binance assists in the investigation

The Dutch financial crime investigation agency FIOD has released a press release stating that they have arrested a man involved in the ZKasino fraud case in the country and seized assets worth 11.4 million euros. The case is currently under investigation.

ZKasino Fraud Case

The Web3 gaming platform ZKasino originally promised users to cross-chain and stake ETH in exchange for ZKAS tokens as a marketing reward. However, after the reward campaign ended, all the ETH staked by users on the platform was converted to ZKAS tokens at a discounted rate, with a lock-up period of over 15 months, turning the staking into a forced IDO.

ZKasino scam: users forced to hold ZKAS tokens for a year after staking ETH turned into token purchase

The ZKasino case involved a fraud of $35 million in assets, and absurdly, the team continued to post on Twitter after the fact as if nothing had happened, ignoring all user requests for repayment.

The ZKasino case has drawn attention in the market, including Vitalik who noted the incident and stated that zero-knowledge proofs have become a marketing and scam gimmick, as ZKasino did not actually utilize the related technology.

Vitalik: ZKasino has no ZK, just a gimmick

Dutch Authorities Arrest ZKasino Team

Suspects Arrested in the Netherlands

The Dutch financial crime investigation agency FIOD has announced the arrest of a 26-year-old suspect in the gambling platform fraud case this week, seizing over 11 million euros in illicit funds, including real estate, a luxury car, and various cryptocurrencies.

ZKasino's official Twitter account stopped updating on 4/25. For investigation purposes, the Dutch authorities have extended the suspect's detention period by fourteen days.

Binance Assists in Investigation

The investigation began on April 25th, and during the process, FIOD worked closely with Binance's financial crime compliance team to track the final destination of the online assets.

The case is still under investigation, and there is a possibility of more suspects being arrested to provide justice for the users.

The Netherlands regulatory authority arrests a man laundering money using Tornado Cash, showing particular attention to such tech-related crimes.