Thread by @Svrakata

Thread 🧵 As we all know now the former OneCoin Head of Legal Irina Dilkinska was extradited to the USA. The indictment is pretty short. So let me add some details from the Bulgarian court decisions to allow the extradition, as I guess not everyone is fluent in Bulgarian language

First a timeline of events:

24.09.2020 superseding indictment filed by SDNY prosecutors
03.02.2021 demands extradition of Irina Dilkinska
22.03.2021 US embassy in Sofia files the demand with Bulgarian authorities
31.05.2021 USA issues red notice for the arrest of Dilkinska
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08.06.2021 Dilkinska is arrested
15.06.2021 Sofia City Court opens a case
01.12.2021 Sofia City Court oks the extradition, the decision is appealed
03.02.2023 Sofia Appeal Court oks the extradition, the decision is final
20.03.2023 Irina Dilkinska is handed over to the US

The extradition demand is based mostly on documents and evidence known from the Mark Scott trials and on the guilty pleas and the hearings of Gilbert Armenta and Konstantin Ignatov. This includes mails, messages, money transfers, false documents.

Notably this involves also money transfers from a company owned at the time by Dilkinska B&N Consult and providing false info to banks that the company generates hundreds of millions of revenue and that she is high net worth individual.

The courts dismissed the claims by Dilkinska’s lawyers that:

- The indictment is too broad and vague
- There is no OneCoin company in Bulgaria and so she could not have been its employee (she was an employee of One Network Services).
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- She has never been to the USA (never claimed)
- She did not meet Scott and Ignatov in the summer of 2016 because she was in India at that time (also known from the Scott case)

The court also notes that the stated in the indictment if proved may constute crime in Bulgaria as well. But as Dilkinska is not indicted in Bulgaria that does not prevent her extradition.

And now the really novel part for me.

As early as 2015 Bulgaria authorities investigated OneCoin. Under file 275/15 Sofia Prosecutor’s investigated money laundering because of money transfers of B&N Consult initiated by Dilkinska. This happens on two consecutive days.

On 21 Oct 2015 B&N made transfers for acquisition of shares based on a contract with UAE companies Hydra LTD, Farma LTD (we have the names only in Bulgarian so possibly other spellings Hidra, Pharma etc.) and RavenR Limited which is known to be controlled by Ruja Ignatova.

On 22 Oct 2015 B&N made a 16 mn euro transfer based on a contract between RISG Limited (UAE) and Paragon Invest (BG) and sheikh Saoud bin Faisal al Qassimi. This corresponds with other evidence that Ruja attempted to acquire a banking license in UAE at the exact same time.

“Because transfers were made to customers of One Network Services an investigation into its activities was made and it was discovered that it is selling education packages…”

The research found no crime and the investigation based on article 253 of Bulgaria's penal code (money laundering) was dropped. Dilkinska was interrogated as a witness but no charges were pressed.

Fast forward to 17.08.2017 the prosecutors launched new investigation (file 504/2017) for an organised crime group / conspiracy to do money laundering around Onecoin. This happens about two months before Ruja disappears.

On 13.11.2017 (a few weeks after Ruja disappears) this investigation is merged with a case for international assistance requested by Germany about their investigation into a group of people including Ruja Ignatova and her mother Veska.

On 16.01. 2018 (likely related to the raid into the OneCoin offices) a document by the Bulgarian prosecution describes the claims in the BG-DE investigation. This includes the names of Dilkinska and B&N and the transfers to the sheikh and to Fenero but again no charges.

Another interesting moment - it appears the Bulgarian investigation was stopped on 30.11.2021 while waiting for results from the investigations in Germany, USA and Italy. “Despite the lengthy investigation and the voluminous evidence collected no people were charged”.

Meanwhile OneCoin rebranded as OneEcosystem continues to operated based in Sofia, Bulgaria.

To sum up in 2015 Bulgarian authorities had a chance to counter what would become one of the biggest financial scams worldwide. And they missed it big time.