Roman Ziemian was arrested after an international law enforcement operation involving Montenegrin authorities and the Interpol.
Ziemian will be brought before an investigating judge to determine where he would be extradited, the police said.
Polish national Roman Ziemian, the co-founder of digital currency trading platform FutureNet who allegedly defrauded users out of around $21 million has been detained in Montenegro, according to multiple reports citing an announcement from the nation’s police.
Both Poland and South Korea had issued international warrants for Ziemian after he escaped from house arrest in Italy in 2022.
An international law enforcement operation involving Montenegrin authorities and the Interpol resulted in Ziemian getting found hiding under a false identity in a newly developed residential area in Podgorica.
After conducting searches, officers of the Sector for Fighting Crime – Group for High-Tech Crime and the Regional Security Center “Centar” confiscated technical devices and items suspected of being the result of a criminal act, according to Radio Slobodna Evropa.
According to the police, Ziemian is suspected of money laundering, theft and violation of law, economic crime.
FutureNet’s other partner, Stefan Morgenstern, “was arrested in Greece and then in Albania,” in 2023 a report said citing the police.
Ziemian will be brought before an investigating judge of the High Court in Podgorica to determine where he would be extradited.
Montenegro is also where jailed Terraform Labs co-founder Do Kwon is awaiting a final decision on extradition. Both South Korea and the U.S. have been battling it out in court to seek Do Kwon’s extradition. Do Kwon has been in custody in the nation since March 2023 after getting caught for using a fake passport.
