Thiruvananthapuram, March 13 -- A Lithuanian national wanted in the US for orchestrating a massive cryptocurrency fraud has been arrested in Kerala, media reports said.

The accused, Aleksej Besciokov, allegedly established the crypto exchange 'Garantex' to launder proceeds from crimes such as ransomware, hacking, and narcotics trade, reported NDTV.

Authorities nabbed Besciokov as he was attempting to flee the country.

According to US Secret Service documents, Besciokov allegedly managed and operated Garantex for nearly six years, facilitating at least $96 billion (over Rs.8 lakh crore) in illicit cryptocurrency transactions for transnational criminal networks, including terrorist organisations, while also violating sanctions, NDTV repo...