This criminal scheme began in 2022, with most payments being made in traditional currency. In 2023, the scheme gained momentum and payments became predominantly made in Binance cryptocurrency, with payments of $4000-10000 per evader. Thus, the total profit amounted to approximately 230 million lei.
Among the five defendants in the criminal case, is the organizer of the criminal group, placed under preventive arrest. The other four men were involved in the transportation of migrants and money laundering. Some of them were detained in July 2025.
The investigating judge seized more than 750,000 lei from the cryptocurrency account of one of the members of the criminal group responsible for converting the received digital currency into other traditional currencies. Vehicles worth almost 500,000 lei were also seized.
How the network operated
The accused, mostly residents of Tighina and Tiraspol, used sophisticated conspiracy methods, including encrypted communication and measures to conceal traces of the crime.
After establishing contact with members of the criminal group, the migrants, following their instructions via mobile applications Telegram and WhatsApp, traveled from different Ukrainian cities (Kharkiv, Uzhgorod and others) to Moldova.
The migrants received instructions to bypass checkpoints in Ukraine in order to subsequently make an illegal border crossing with Moldova through the left-bank region of the country (in some cases after midnight, including in cars with Italian license plates). They were then transported to Chisinau or other localities, from where they were picked up by accomplices to cross the border into Romania.
Three more co-organizers of the criminal group are wanted.
