Israel Extradites Dual National Accused of Multi-Million Dollar Crypto Fraud to US

Israel extradited Alexander Block, a dual Israeli-Russian citizen, to the United States on Thursday, where he faces charges of exploiting a digital currency system vulnerability to steal nearly $3 million. Block, also known as Alexander Gorvich, is accused in the U.S. of fraud, computer-related offenses, trafficking in stolen property, and money laundering.

Block was apprehended at Ben Gurion Airport in May 2025 while attempting to travel to Russia. His extradition followed the exhaustion of all legal proceedings against him in Israel, including an appeal to the Supreme Court. The extradition was a collaborative effort between the State Prosecutor's Office's international department, the Israel Police's operational coordination unit, and its Interpol division.

According to the U.S. extradition request, in late July 2022, Block identified a weakness in the "Nomad" system, which facilitates cryptocurrency conversions between different networks. He allegedly manipulated the system's code to issue digital currency without providing any collateral, subsequently withdrawing assets worth approximately $3 million on August 1, 2022. He then converted these assets into various cryptocurrencies and moved them across multiple digital wallets to obscure their origin.

Israel's Supreme Court upheld the lower court's decision to extradite Block, establishing a precedent that exploiting security flaws and programming errors constitutes illegal computer intrusion. The court also ruled that the public visibility of cryptocurrency transactions does not negate money laundering charges, as the anonymity of wallet holders complicates fund tracing.