Spanish authorities detained Alejandro Cao de Benos, founder of a pro-North Korea organization, over alleged collaboration with convicted cryptocurrency researcher Virgil Griffith.
Together they reportedly conspired to assist North Korea in evading US sanctions using cryptocurrency and money laundering. Griffith is currently serving a 63-month US prison sentence.
Cao de Benos was arrested in Madrid traveling under a false identity from Barcelona. If extradited and convicted in the US, he faces 20 years in jail for the crypto sanctions scheme.
North Korea has increasingly turned to cryptocrime to fund its regime as sanctions mount, stealing an estimated $1.65 billion worth of crypto assets in 2022 alone.
Cases like this represent global coordination to combat state-sponsored North Korean hacking, crypto theft, and sanctions violations. But curtailing clandestine financing remains an ongoing challenge.
