Polish prosecutors have widened their criminal investigation into cryptocurrency exchange Zondacrypto after a court in Katowice approved pretrial detention for Roman Ż., the fifth suspect charged in a case involving organized crime, computer fraud, and alleged misappropriation of client funds.
Prosecutor General Waldemar Żurek confirmed late Monday that Roman Ż. had been charged with membership in an organized criminal group and, within that group, with misappropriating clients' funds through computer fraud. Investigators allege the group took no less than 7.8 million złoty, around $2 million, from users of the exchange by making unauthorized changes, deletions, and additions to its data, and by interfering with how the exchange processed and transmitted information. He faces up to 10 years in prison. Police detained him in Silesia on Saturday and seized exchange documents; he denied the charges and gave a statement.
The case gained wider public attention after Zondacrypto customers reported withdrawal problems in April. More than 3,600 complaints had reached prosecutors by June, and customers estimated potential losses above $94 million. Investigators are examining allegations of large-scale fraud and money laundering tied to the exchange.
Three other suspects, Anna P., Jaromira W., and Rafał Z., were placed in pretrial detention for three months on September 4. Among the allegations are that nearly €8 million left the exchange operator's account last October to buy property in France, that a €2.9 million loan was recorded as repaid when it had not been, and that two Katowice properties worth 700,000 and 800,000 złoty were transferred without payment. Prosecutors also say 7.5 million złoty was laundered through fictitious property purchases, with a further count involving 1.7 million złoty. Anna P. is additionally accused of obstructing proceedings into the deprivation of liberty of founder Sylwester Suszek by removing a hard drive from a filling station's CCTV recorder and inciting false testimony.
Zondacrypto launched in Katowice in 2014 as BitBay, founded by Sylwester Suszek, and rebranded after shifting its registration to Estonia in 2020 under parent company BB Trade Estonia. It claimed around 1.3 million clients, most of them Polish. Prosecutors say an organized group operated from 2020 to 2026 with the aim of taking over Suszek's assets. Suszek disappeared in March 2022. Przemysław Kral, the lawyer who became chief executive after Suszek's disappearance, has not been seen since April 16, having told customers the exchange held 4,500 BTC that only Suszek could unlock. Estonia's financial intelligence unit revoked BB Trade Estonia's license on June 29.
