This was what I read today. Please take your time to read also.



Panic spread on the Internet Friday as word about
Arthur Budovsky Belanchuk’s arrest reached users of
his digital currency business Liberty Reserve, which
was shut down on Friday.
Budovsky, 39, was arrested on Friday in Spain as part
of a money laundering investigation performed
jointly by police agencies in the United States and
Costa Rica. U.S. officials likely will seek his
extradition.
Costa Rican prosecutor José Pablo González said
Budovsky, a former U.S. citizen and naturalized Costa
Rican of Ukrainian origin, has been under
investigation since 2011 in Costa Rica for suspected
money laundering using apparent shell companies
he created to run Liberty Reserve.
Budovsky relocated to Costa Rica after he and
partner Vladimir Kats were indicted on July 27, 2006,
in New York on charges of operating an illegal
financial business, GoldAge Inc. – a precursor to
Liberty Reserve – from their Brooklyn apartments,
according to the U.S. Justice Department. U.S.
officials said the two had transmitted at least $30
million to digital currency accounts worldwide since
beginning operations in 2002.
Budovsky and Kats were sentenced to five years in
prison in 2007 for engaging in the business of
transmitting money without a license, a felony
violation of state banking law. They received five
years probation.
Officials have not commented on how much money
Liberty Reserve accounts handled, nor how many
clients are affected by its closing. But those numbers
could be higher than in the GoldAge case.
The daily La Nación reported that Budovsky, a
naturalized Costa Rican, renounced his U.S.
citizenship last year, after the joint investigation
began. The Tico Times could not independently verify
that information, as Costa Rican government
agencies are closed for the weekend.
In 2011, Costa Rica’s financial regulatory authority,
the Financial Institution Superintendency (SUGEF),
closed Liberty Reserve, citing a lack of transparency
and accounting of funding sources, La Nación
reported.
However, Budovsky continued operating the
company in conjunction with other Costa Rican
corporations, including Silverhand Solutions and
Technology S. A, Worldwide E-Commerce Business
S .A., Grupo Lulu Limitada, Triton Group A and A, S. A.
and Cyberfuel.com.
The same year SUGEF ordered Liberty Reserve
closed, U.S. prosecutors based in New York asked
Costa Rican officials to begin investigating Budovsky
and his companies. On Friday, San José prosecutors
raided Budovsky’s home and offices in Escazú and
Santa Ana, southwest of San José, and in the
province of Heredia, north of the capital.
Investigators allege that Budovsky’s businesses in
Costa Rica were used to launder funds from child
pornography websites and drug trafficking.
Both GoldAge and Liberty Reserve operated under a
similar system, allowing users to nearly anonymously
open accounts with limited documentation of
identity. Deposits are backed by gold and other
precious metals, and customers could withdraw
money by requesting wire transfers to accounts
anywhere in the world or by having checks sent to
individuals.
U.S. officials have targeted companies like
GoldAge and Liberty Reserve for years, saying
they are hotbeds for criminal activity including
money laundering, drug trafficking and tax evasion.
“The ability to conduct transactions in digital
currencies is constantly available, making digital
currencies more convenient than other methods of
funds transfer, which may be limited by normal
business hours and international time zones.
Additionally, digital currency transactions can be
conducted from any location or device with Internet
access,” a 2008 report by the U.S. National Drug
Intelligence Center stated.
“Because most digital currencies are denominated
into internationally recognized weights of precious
metals, inconveniences traditionally associated with
international financial transactions, such as
calculating international exchange rates for another
nation’s currency, are eliminated,” the report added.
Liberty Reserve, which operated without oversight
from any global agency, was a convenient tool for
foreign currency brokers, as it allowed them to
bypass local legislation and avoid exchange rate
fluctuations, particularly in developing countries. But
its lack of oversight also attracted organized criminal
elements, prosecutors said.
“Payment in digital currencies makes it easier for
traffickers to launder funds that no longer need to be
placed into the traditional financial system. Payment
can be immediately forwarded to an international
digital currency account, perhaps in payment to the
original source of supply, or further layered through
multiple digital currency accounts and exchangers
until reintegrated into the legitimate economy,” the
National Drug Intelligence Center stated.
To open a Liberty Reserve account, users needed only
to submit a name, address, email address, date of
birth and occupation.
Budovsky’s arrest and the closing of the Liberty
Reserve website prompted a wave of online chatter
from affected clients. Forex Magnates, which
describes itself as a “specialized forex news and
research source,” called Liberty Reserve “the leading
payment channel for traders in emerging and frontier
markets.”
Citing a broker and analyst in Pakistan, Forex
Magnates said, “Forex brokers have been benefiting
from Liberty Reserve’s vast access as a payment
provider, especially in countries where traders face
difficulties in transferring funds. Liberty Reserve was
a ‘gift’ for several traders, especially after the State
Banks’ (State Bank of Pakistan) changes to
international money transfers.”
Online reaction has also come from Nigeria, Malaysia
and other countries.
An earlier story on www.ticotimes.net about
Budovsky’s arrest prompted worried clients to
ponder the fate of funds deposited with the
company.




HOW MUCH WAS LOST PLEASE SHARE.

Lets pray, cos if this is true, hmmm I don die be that ooo...

its true but u nver die i think there will be a means of getting back ur money but it might not be nao.

Thats soo sad

Wen I see 'shot' down.I bin wonder wetin dey use shoot am.Knockout,pistol,ak47 or Bazooka.Op your gbagaun too much o.

Nigerians will loose asin I mean loose, those guys that exchange Liberty reserve in Nigeria, how much of their money do you think is at stake, huuum this is not a laughing matter at all.

This is not the fist time the US government will steal peoples money when their economics is in mess.
I think if the owner is found guilty of any crime they should have arrest and prosecute him only and then rectify the problem. Not shooting the system down.
I know why they do this. it simply because of 666 issue. you can't believe that. According the bible when the 666 law is fully activated those who refuse the sign won't be able to buy or sell. And with existence of e-currencies like LR: that won't be possible because there are many online online store and offshore store that are accepting LR with no sting attached.Currency like webmoney, etc will be the next move. let just seat back and watch.
All user of LR are to criminals.

Thank God investigations are still going on. I strongly believe we will get back our money if not all. It may not be now just as someone said. Meanwhile, I strongly advice that we all roll over to plan B. Do you have any? switch over and don;t let the saga affect your moral. Remain focused and be positive that everything will be normal again.

I opened an account recently/
I happy say i never fund am and my clients never begin use am.
These online banks sef!