Documents from extradition proceedings at the Belgrade Higher Court obtained by the fifth estate and the Balkan Investigative Reporting Network provide an extraordinary glimpse into the lifestyle and whereabouts of a young Canadian man with an alleged $65 million US in cryptocurrency burning a hole in his pocket and multiple countries seeking his arrest. As his flight departed from Amsterdam’s Schiphol airport en route to Kuwait via Istanbul, Canadian crypto fugitive Andean Medjedovic was unaware that his globe-trotting lifestyle would soon be halted. Just two weeks later, on Dec. 11, 2023, Dutch authorities issued a European arrest warrant for the then 21-year-old, alleging he had pulled off a “sophisticated hack” that netted him $48 million US in cryptocurrency. The Hamilton native who had graduated from high school at 14 and received a master’s degree in pure mathematics at 18 was arrested nine months later in Belgrade, Serbia, where he quickly appeared before a judge.
Online speculation had been fuelled by his own statements to journalists, who reported his mentions of South America, unnamed islands and a jail “somewhere in Europe.” Since disappearing in late 2021, according to translated statements made during the Serbian proceedings, he has travelled to Brazil, Dubai, Spain and elsewhere. “He may be able to live large,” said Kyle Armstrong, a former FBI agent who works at blockchain intelligence firm TRM Labs.
However, to pay your rent, to buy a car, to travel, there’s not many places that are willing to accept cryptocurrency,” he said. The fifth estate emailed Medjedovic to request a comment on the allegations against him. He replied: “I have only one defence to the allegations: ‘I’m a racist.’ Please include that, that’s all, thanks.” Medjedovic “suddenly” departed the hotel the morning after the hack took place, they said, despite the fact that he had paid for the following month’s accommodation.
Leave a Reply