Canadian Hacker Accused of $65M DeFi Theft Escapes Serbian Custody

Canadian Hacker Accused of $65M DeFi Theft Escapes Serbian Custody

CBC News reports the suspect laundered stolen funds via Tornado Cash and was released in Serbia after extradition denial before allegedly evading capture.

Fact Check
The assessment is based on strong, consistent evidence from multiple highly credible and relevant sources. Three distinct journalistic outlets directly corroborate all key elements of the statement. Canada's national public broadcaster, CBC, confirms a Canadian fugitive accused of a $65 million theft disappeared after being arrested in Serbia. This is reinforced by Balkan Insight, a specialized regional news authority, which explicitly reports that the Canadian fugitive "escaped custody in Serbia." A third, industry-specific source from the cryptocurrency news sector also confirms the individual's identity, the $65 million amount, and his "disappearance from Serbian custody." There are no contradictions among these primary sources. The other two sources provided—a local Colorado sheriff's blotter and a general Wikipedia page—are entirely irrelevant to the case and were disregarded. The convergence of consistent reporting from a national broadcaster, a regional expert, and an industry publication provides a high degree of confidence that the statement is true.
Summary

Canadian fugitive Andean Medjedovic is accused of stealing $65 million in two DeFi protocol hacks—$16.5 million from Indexed Finance and $48 million from KyberSwap. Arrested in Belgrade in August 2024, Serbian authorities denied a U.S. extradition request and released him. The U.S. Department of Justice alleges he laundered the stolen funds through the cryptocurrency mixer Tornado Cash while evading capture. Authorities believe he later fled, highlighting both the jurisdictional difficulties in prosecuting cross-border crypto crimes and the role of privacy tools in laundering illicit proceeds.

Terms & Concepts
  • Decentralized Finance (DeFi): A blockchain-based financial system that operates without centralized intermediaries, enabling peer-to-peer transactions through smart contracts.
  • Smart Contract: Self-executing blockchain code that automatically enforces the terms of an agreement without third-party involvement.
  • Tornado Cash: A decentralized cryptocurrency mixing service that enhances transaction privacy by obfuscating the source and destination of funds.