In a major authorized improvement, London’s Excessive Courtroom has dominated in opposition to the extradition of British nationwide Christopher Hamilton to the USA, the place he confronted costs of cash laundering and wire fraud linked to the infamous faux cryptocurrency, OneCoin. The choice marks a pivotal second in Hamilton’s authorized battle, redirecting the course of his prosecution to British jurisdiction.
Christopher Hamilton, 64, was indicted by a New York grand jury in 2019 for his alleged involvement in a USD 4 billion Ponzi scheme related to OneCoin, which defrauded roughly 3.5 million people globally. The co-founder of OneCoin, Karl Greenwood, was beforehand sentenced to twenty years in a New York jail for fraud and cash laundering in September. One other key determine within the scheme, Ruja Ignatova, broadly known as the “Cryptoqueen,” stays at giant.
Hamilton’s extradition to the US was initially authorised final 12 months; nonetheless, Thursday’s ruling on the Excessive Courtroom upheld his attraction in opposition to that call. Decide Victoria Sharp emphasised {that a} substantial portion of the alleged cash laundering actions by Hamilton occurred inside the UK. Consequently, the decide asserted that British authorities, particularly the Metropolis of London Police, ought to examine and decide if felony costs could be pursued in opposition to Hamilton inside the UK.
The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) had earlier expressed the view that Hamilton ought to face prosecution in the USA slightly than the UK. Regardless of the closure of the Metropolis of London Police’s investigation in 2019, Decide Sharp famous that essential incriminating proof, recognized by US authorities after the closure, might now be utilized by British regulation enforcement.
“The consequence of the appellant’s success on this attraction is just not that he secures impunity. It’s that he needs to be answerable to the regulation within the UK slightly than the US,” concluded Decide Sharp.
A spokesperson for the Crown Prosecution Service said, “We’re fastidiously contemplating the Excessive Courtroom’s judgment.” Hamilton’s authorized representatives declined to touch upon the ruling, leaving the authorized implications of this determination poised for continued examination.