Authorities in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) have reportedly taken Ildar Ilham, the founder of the decentralized finance protocol WhiteRock Finance, into custody as part of allegations over a $30-million scam through ZKasino.
According to a Thursday X post from crypto sleuth ZachXBT, UAE authorities arrested Ilham in connection with an investigation into “wide-scale fraud” surrounding ZKasino. ZachXBT’s report suggested that WhiteRock was connected to ZKasino’s $30 million fundraising.
The alleged investor scam followed ZKasino’s launch in April 2024, with the platform promising an airdrop of its native token to select users. However, reports indicate that more than a year later, the funds still have not been returned.
In April 2024, Dutch authorities arrested a 26-year-old man — reportedly crypto personality Elham Nourzai — on claims of fraud, embezzlement and money laundering, citing his involvement in the ZKasino scam.
According to ZachXBT, Ilham’s arrest is connected to the investigation against Nourzai and ZKasino, with his extradition proceedings to the Netherlands underway.
Lior Ben Zakan, another individual suspected to be involved with the case, was not mentioned in the arrest report.
Related: ZKasino scammer loses $27M as Ethereum price drops
WhiteRock native token’s price falls after arrest
Following reports of Ilham’s detainment, the price of WhiteRock’s native token, WHITE, dropped more than 40% on Thursday, to $0.0003909 from $0.0006582.
The case is one of the latest scams targeting crypto users. US authorities reported on Wednesday that they had recovered roughly $40,000 out of more than $250,000 taken from an individual who donated to a fraudulent inaugural committee.
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