Riccardo Spagni, the previous maintainer of the privateness coin Monero also referred to as Fluffypony, faces extradition to South Africa months after his arrest by U.S. authorities.
In a Thursday courtroom submitting for the Middle District of Tennessee, Magistrate Judge Alistair Newbern ordered Spagni to surrender to U.S. Marshals on July 5 for extradition to South Africa. He will reportedly face 378 prices associated to allegations of fraud and forgery between 2009 and 2011 at an organization referred to as Cape Cookies.
U.S. authorities arrested Spagni in Nashville in July 2021 on the request of the South African authorities, holding him in custody till September. The courtroom filings trace at permitting Spagni to be within the United States for the Independence Day vacation weekend earlier than being taken to Africa early on Tuesday. None of the costs in South Africa are associated to Spagni’s time engaged on Monero (XMR), for which he was the lead maintainer till December 2019.
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Spagni, who posts on Twitter beneath the deal with Fluffypony, has been concerned within the crypto house since 2011. Since his arrest within the United States, he tweeted relating to his need to return to South Africa to “address this matter” associated to the fraud prices:
I’m very happy that the U.S. courtroom has launched me. I’m actively working with my attorneys on a approach to return to South Africa as quickly as attainable so I can tackle this matter and get it behind me as soon as and for all. That’s what I’ve at all times wished to do.
— fluffy/pony (@fluffypony) September 21, 2021
According to information from Cointelegraph Markets, the value of XMR has fallen roughly 8% within the final 24 hours, reaching $110 on the time of publication. As with many cryptocurrencies within the present bear market, the value of the privateness coin has fallen considerably within the final 30 days — roughly 46% from greater than $206 on May 31.