Israeli Extradited to US for $2.8 Million Crypto Fraud
Translated & summarized from Ice by baba
Alexander Blok (Gurvitz), an Israeli-Russian citizen, was extradited to the United States to face charges related to a $2.8 million cryptocurrency fraud. He allegedly exploited a vulnerability in the Nomad system to steal digital assets in August 2022. Israeli courts approved his extradition, setting legal precedents for computer crimes and money laundering in the blockchain space. Meanwhile, Google Cloud is launching a new service for managing digital assets using multi-party computation technology.
The story in 5 lines · by baba
- Alexander Blok (Gurvitz) extradited to US for $2.8 million crypto fraud.
- Blok allegedly exploited a vulnerability in the Nomad system in July 2022.
- Israeli courts set precedents on computer intrusion and money laundering in blockchain.
- Google Cloud launching new service for digital asset management in 2027.
- The extradition was handled by the State Prosecutor's Office International Department.
An Israeli-Russian citizen, Alexander Blok (Gurvitz), has been extradited to the United States to face charges of fraud, computer crimes, receiving stolen property, and money laundering. The extradition was facilitated by the State Prosecutor's Office International Department in cooperation with the Israel Police Interpol unit, following the completion of all legal proceedings in Israel. Blok was arrested at Ben Gurion Airport in May 2025 while attempting to travel to Russia.
According to the US extradition request, in late July 2022, Blok exploited a vulnerability in the "Nomad" system, which is used to convert cryptocurrency between different blockchain networks. He allegedly altered the system's code to issue him digital tokens without depositing any funds. On August 1, 2022, he withdrew tokens valued at approximately $2.8 million from a Nomad wallet, subsequently converting them to various currencies and transferring them through multiple digital wallets to obscure their origin.
Israeli courts declared Blok eligible for extradition, a decision upheld by the Supreme Court. The Supreme Court's ruling established precedents, interpreting "computer material intrusion" broadly to include exploiting security flaws and programming errors. It also determined that the public nature of blockchain networks does not negate money laundering charges, as wallet identities remain anonymous and transfers complicate fund tracing. A further appeal for an additional hearing before the Supreme Court president was also denied.
The extradition case was handled by lawyer Avi Kronenberg from the International Department of the State Prosecutor's Office. Separately, Google announced its entry into the crypto financial infrastructure, with its Google Cloud division launching a new service called "multi-party computation" to assist financial institutions with Bitcoin and other digital asset management. This service, currently in limited testing and slated for commercial release in early 2027, utilizes MPC technology to split transaction signing capabilities across multiple systems, enhancing security by preventing a single system breach from compromising assets.
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