After 5 years working as the co-founder and former principal developer of the privacy-oriented cryptocurrency Monero (XMR), Riccardo Spagni announced his resignation from the company in December 2019.
According to a report published on June 2 by South African news outlet MyBroadband, Spagni has waived his right to an extradition hearing in the United States and has asked the court to expedite his transfer to South Africa so that he can face the charges there.
The private plane flying Spagni to a cryptocurrency conference in Los Cabos, Mexico, made a stop in Nashville, Tennessee, to refuel where he was immediately arrested by US law enforcement officials.
According to court documents, he had recently immigrated to the United States from South Africa and had purchased a home in New York.
The charges against Spagni
Spagni was charged with allegedly stealing R1,453,561.47 ($93,532) from his former employer, Cape Cookies. Spagni is suspected of intercepting invoices intended for IT provider Ensync and sending them to Cape Cookies instead.
He is accused of forging invoices purporting to be from Ensync and addressed to Cape Cookies, on which he allegedly included his own bank account information and VAT number.
According to court documents, Spagni inflated the invoice quantities, and it was discovered that Ensync’s true invoices were paid at a later date despite the fact that the original amounts had been inflated.
Spagni is also suspected of forging invoices for at least three fictitious IT vendors by using false contact information. He has entered a not guilty plea in response to the charges.
South African police issues arrest warrant
South African officials have issued an arrest warrant for Spagni and requested that he be detained for extradition by United States authorities.
He was freed from jail after the South African police failed to deliver the necessary paperwork for his September 2021 extradition hearing.
“I am actively working with my attorneys on a way to return to South Africa as soon as possible so I can address this matter and get it behind me once and for all,” Spagni said.
South Africa had issued a warrant for Spagni’s arrest on 378 separate counts, according to court documents released in May 2022.
Spagni’s defence team requested that these documents be removed from the record, claiming that the government’s late submission violated due process safeguards.
The court denied the request after Spagni agreed to waive his right to a hearing on his extradition.