ChainCatcher news, according to Decrypt, former Russian investigator Marat Tambiyev was sentenced to 16 years in prison for accepting approximately $73 million in Bitcoin bribes during an investigation into organized crime. This amount exceeds five times the highest bribe amount in Russian history.Marat Tambiyev is accused of transferring half of the criminal gang's Bitcoin into his own wallet, leaving the other half for the criminals. Investigators found the Bitcoin wallet keys in a folder on his laptop named "Pension."Marat Tambiyev insisted on his innocence in court, arguing that his actions helped the state recover part of the criminal gang's proceeds. According to Russian state media, he plans to appeal this verdict. Currently, one-third of the Bitcoin stored on Marat Tambiyev's computer has been recovered, while the whereabouts of the remaining portion remain unclear.

ChainCatcher news, U.S. Senator Bob Menendez (Democrat) from New Jersey was found guilty by a jury on Tuesday of accepting bribes, including gold bars and luxury cars, in exchange for his political influence. It is reported that Menendez is a staunch critic of cryptocurrency, having claimed that Bitcoin is the ideal choice for criminals.Menendez is also a co-sponsor of the "Accountability for Cryptocurrency in El Salvador (ACES) Act," which requires the U.S. State Department to report on the risks to the U.S. financial system posed by El Salvador's adoption of Bitcoin as legal tender.

ChainCatcher news, according to Digital Asset, the South Korean Supreme Court upheld the verdict against two former Coinone executives who accepted bribes for listing certain cryptocurrencies on the exchange.On June 13, the court dismissed an appeal from one former executive who was sentenced to receive approximately 1.9 billion won (1.38 million USD) in bribes for listing certain virtual assets on Coinone. The executive will serve four years in prison and must forfeit the 1.9 billion won in bribe money received. Similarly, the court rejected the appeal of another former manager responsible for listings at Coinone. This individual was sentenced to receive 800 million won in bribes and was sentenced to three and a half years in prison. The manager must also return the 800 million won obtained through bribery.

ChainCatcher news, LayerZero CEO Bryan Pellegrino responded on social media to the issue of bribery concerning the reported witch address. Pellegrino strongly advised the reporter not to alter the report, stating that the team possesses the original records from GitHub and Commonwealth, and editing or deleting the witch clusters could jeopardize the entire bounty.Previously, witch hunter @SybilHorror6 stated that after his report was made public, an anonymous individual contacted him and was willing to bribe him $12,000 to clear 3 clusters totaling 172 wallet addresses.

ChainCatcher news, according to Cointelegraph, the Africa-focused risk consulting firm SBM Intelligence warns that the bribery allegations against Binance CEO Richard Teng by Nigerian government officials could hinder the country's efforts to attract foreign investment.SBM Intelligence noted in its assessment of recent events and their economic impact that the detention of Binance officials in Nigeria sends a discouraging message to foreign investors, which could undermine confidence in the country's investment environment. "Regardless of the allegations against Binance, it is important to remember that the experience of a foreign company will serve as a warning to others. If Nigeria is marked as a country where company officials may be solicited for bribes and then detained indefinitely, persuading investors to invest will become extremely challenging."

ChainCatcher news, according to Bloomberg, Nigeria's Ministry of Information spokesperson Rabiu Ibrahim stated that Binance CEO Richard Teng made false bribery allegations against an unidentified Nigerian government official, claiming that an unidentified official demanded a payment of $150 million in cryptocurrency to resolve an ongoing criminal investigation against the company.The Ministry of Information spokesperson said, "The Binance CEO's statement lacks substantive content and is merely a diversionary tactic."

ChainCatcher news, according to Cointelegraph, the Stakeholders in Blockchain Technology Association of Nigeria (SiBAN) has demanded that Binance disclose the identity of the agents who bribed them. SiBAN emphasized that Binance needs to provide specific details and urged them to identify the individuals involved in the alleged bribery. Nigerian cryptocurrency stakeholders stated that if mishandled, the bribery allegations against Binance could damage the government's image, thereby adversely affecting Nigeria's cryptocurrency industry.It is reported that on May 7, Binance CEO Richard Teng elaborated on the detention of former IRS agent and head of Binance's financial crime compliance team Tigran Gambaryan, stating that unidentified individuals had approached employees of the exchange and proposed payments to settle the allegations.

ChainCatcher news, according to blockchain data analysis company Bitrace, the address marked as Multichain Suspicious Address 4 has transferred 1023.8 WBTC, approximately 29.69 million USD, to an address starting with 0x3c74, which then exchanged this asset for stablecoins and transferred it.Bitrace believes that this asset has been transferred to several redemption service providers, and after a large amount of funds were liquidated, they flowed back to exchanges. The outflow of funds is associated with the rumored FTX bribery funds, and it is inferred that Multichain funds have been confiscated, with the case entering the asset disposal process. More funds may further flow out and be liquidated in the future.

ChainCatcher news, FTX founder SBF pleaded not guilty on Thursday in federal court in New York to five additional charges related to the collapse of his former cryptocurrency exchange FTX and hedge fund Alameda Research.SBF's lawyer Mark Cohen stated that he plans to file a motion to prevent his client from being tried on all charges. SBF will argue that under the treaties between the United States and the Bahamas, an extradited person can only be tried for the charges for which they were extradited. A spokesperson for SBF said, "As Cohen stated in court, we will challenge the new charges when we file our motion." (source link)

ChainCatcher news, according to Global Times, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Mao Ning responded to questions regarding "U.S. federal prosecutors accusing SBF of directing the transfer of at least $40 million in cryptocurrency to bribe Chinese government officials to unfreeze Alameda Research accounts" by stating that he is not aware of the relevant situation. (source link)