An Israeli-Russian national was apprehended last week while reportedly trying to escape Israel using a fake identity, and is now facing extradition to the US for his involvement in a significant crypto hack that resulted in nearly $190 million in damages.
Alexander Gurevich was taken into custody on May 1 at Ben-Gurion Airport as he was about to board a flight to Russia, according to local reports. It was revealed that he had legally changed his name and obtained a new passport the day before his arrest. Gurevich is accused of pilfering millions in digital assets from a US-based crypto company in 2022 and then attempting to extort a reward.
Allegedly, Gurevich exploited a vulnerability in a blockchain platform called Nomad on August 1, 2022, siphoning off around $2.89 million in cryptocurrency. Subsequently, other individuals took advantage of the loophole, resulting in overall losses of approximately $190 million.
After the cybercrime, Gurevich purportedly reached out to Nomad’s chief technology officer via encrypted messaging apps, confessing to the theft and returning about $162,000 in stolen tokens. He also demanded a $500,000 reward in exchange for divulging how he discovered the vulnerability. However, when the company offered a smaller sum, equivalent to 10% of what he had stolen, Gurevich ceased communication and disappeared.
The FBI’s San Francisco field office initiated a criminal probe, leading to an eight-count indictment filed in August 2023 in the Northern District of California. The charges against Gurevich include wire fraud, money laundering, and transportation of stolen property. If found guilty, he could face a maximum of 20 years in prison for the most serious offenses.
Despite being instructed to appear for an extradition hearing upon his return to Israel on April 19, Gurevich chose to ignore the summons. He legally changed his name to “Alexander Block” in the Population Registry and obtained a new passport before attempting to flee to Russia on May 1. However, his escape plan was foiled when he was arrested just before departure and brought before a court the following day in handcuffs.
Israel’s State Attorney’s Office formally requested on May 2 that Gurevich be declared extraditable. Judge Einat Avman-Moller ordered him to remain in custody pending a scheduled hearing, with representation from the Public Defender’s Office. The operation involved Israeli authorities such as the National Fraud Unit and the Tel Aviv Fraud Division.
Given that Gurevich was not residing in Israel at the time of the alleged offenses, it is unlikely that he would serve any sentence in Israel if convicted abroad.