French authorities have placed Svetlana A., a Russian-born French citizen, under formal investigation and detained her over allegations of organized fraud, aggravated laundering of tax-fraud proceeds and criminal conspiracy. Investigators suspect that alleged manipulation of Verasity's VRA token by Svetlana A. and her British partner, identified as Robert H., helped finance a Dubai real estate portfolio. She spent more than €50 million in 2022 on around 100 apartments and three luxury villas, Le Monde reported, with the properties generating at least €4 million in cumulative rental income through 2025. The investigation concerns VRA's roughly 65-fold rise over about two and a half months in spring 2021, before its subsequent reversal; authorities have not publicly identified specific trades, wallets, exchanges or counterparties involved in the alleged scheme. Patent and UK corporate records link Svetlana Astakhova and Robert James Mark Hain to Verasity-related technology and Veraviews Limited. Svetlana A. denies wrongdoing, while the case remains under judicial investigation and no conviction has been reported.