A Dublin man charged following a cyber crime investigation into darknet markets and money laundering involving cryptocurrencies has been released on bail.
On Monday morning, the Garda National Cyber Crime Bureau (GNCCB) carried out the raid at a residence in North County Dublin and seized cryptocurrency, namely Bitcoin and Monero, with a current market value of around €6.5 million.
23-year-old Kevin Daniel Andrei, of Drynam Avenue, Swords, appeared at Dublin District Court this afternoon charged with three counts of possessing close to €600,000 in crime proceeds.
He is accused of "concealing and disguising the true nature and source of a number of Wirex, Revolut and Binance transactions" on dates ranging from February 2021 to February 2024.
The accused has yet to indicate a plea.
Mr Andrei has surrendered his passport and has been ordered to sign on three days a week at his local Garda station.
He must also not apply for a replacement passport or new travel documents, reside at his current address, provide a mobile phone number to Gardaí and be contactable at all times.
The judge also warned Mr Andrei that it would be a condition of his bail "not to carry out any cryptocurrency transactions" and make no comments on public forums, including social media, about the case.
Another man and a woman were released without charge earlier, and a file is being sent to the DPP.
Main image: Members of Gardaí on patrol. Picture by: Leah Farrell/© RollingNews.ie
