SBU searched the founder of ForkLog and seized all the equipment from the office

A few days ago, the security service of Ukraine searched the apartment of the founder of the Russian-language resource ForkLog. All activities were carried out by the main investigative department of the SBU. The reason for the search is criminal proceedings against a group of persons from the United States and Ukraine who created and implemented a scheme for seizing funds from payment cards not belonging to these persons.

According to the SBU, the resource in question acted as an accomplice to the suspects who exchanged cryptocurrencies for the Ukrainian hryvnia with the help of ForkLog. The most interesting thing is that the site itself is a purely informational site without the possibility of exchanging cryptocurrency for Fiat or any other similar transactions. According to the founder of the site, Anatoly Kaplan, he has nothing to do with suspects.

As part of the search, the SBU officers seized several computers and laptops with cryptocurrency wallets stored on them. An interesting nuance - one of the officers of the SBU during the search was trying to bring Bitcoins to his wallet. Kaplan's lawyer, who was at the scene at the time, summoned a police squad, reporting a robbery.

However, the very next day after the withdrawal of Kaplan’s computer equipment, the ether coins were transferred to a third-party wallet from his personal wallet . And not a part, but the whole cryptocurrency. That same evening, unidentified persons tried to withdraw about 3,000 hryvnias from his bank card.

Kaplan said that he was not going to leave everything as it was. He decided to publicize what happened to show the public one of the possible scenarios for the development of relations between the state and the cryptocurrency community. At the moment, the founder of ForkLog, together with lawyers, is trying to return the seized property. According to the lawyers defending the interests of the journalist, the moment looks very strange with the transfer of cryptocurrencies belonging to Kaplan to addresses that are controlled by the SSU officers. In addition to the ether, other cryptocurrencies were also transferred.

Representatives of the security services searched the ForkLog office, confiscating virtually all of the company's computer hardware (about ten iMacs), as well as confiscating cash. The SBU officers took with them a bottle of rum that was in the office.

“Financial regulators can take a balanced and cautious position, stating that they are not yet ready to define cryptocurrency. At the same time, the Ukrainian law enforcement system by its active actions demonstrates that a cryptocurrency is a valuable enough asset to organize raids for it. Usually, searches occur in conjunction with embezzlement at jewelry stores before the New Year, and cryptocurrency has become the trend of this season, ”lawyer and managing partner of Juscutum law firm Artem Afyan. In the future, this company will represent Kaplan’s interests.

According to him, the fact that the SBU decided to search the media office for a single “tip” of a certain criminal element is a consequence of “glaring incompetence.” The lawyer argues that there is another option - this is the purposeful conduct of the court in error by the investigator. “We are counting on the proper reaction of the authorities and a very prompt return of computers seized during the search. But the return of cryptocurrency and the responsibility of the investigative group will become a significant and illustrative case. We plan to do this separately, ”the lawyer commented on the situation.

Such situations are not new. In 2015, the law enforcement agencies of Ukraine were very actively conducting searches in the offices of IT companies and apartments of a number of representatives of the telecommunications industry. Then, over 2500 highly qualified specialists left the country due to this attitude. Then, in 2015, a search was conducted in the apartment of the founder of the Kuna Bitcoin Agency company Mikhail Chobanyan. The reason is open criminal proceedings on the fact that the information on the sale and purchase of Bitcoin is posted on the agency’s website.

In 2017, the SBU began to conduct searches of crypto-mining farms, despite the fact that this activity is not prohibited by law in Ukraine.

Now the site ForkLog continues to work, and its founder is doing everything to achieve justice from the law enforcement agencies of the country.