Roman Ż. Charged in Zondacrypto Case as Customer Losses Exceed $94 Million
Polish prosecutors have charged Roman Ż., a former business partner of missing BitBay founder Sylwester Suszek, with two offenses in connection with the Zondacrypto case. The charges include alleged fraud and an unspecified second offense. This is at least the fifth person to face charges as part of the investigation into the exchange's collapse.
The total losses for customers are estimated at over 350 million zlotys ($94 million), with prosecutors having received more than 3,600 complaints from users who were unable to recover their assets on the platform. Roman Ż. was arrested in Poland's Silesia region and taken into custody after investigators discovered he planned to travel to China, which they viewed as a flight risk.
A court will now decide whether Ż. should remain in detention during the investigation. His lawyer has described him as a former business partner of Suszek who helped manage BitBay before it changed its name to Zonda in 2021. During searches at his arrest location and registered address, officers seized watches and documents tied to Zondacrypto's operations.