Zondacrypto case: Poland charges fifth suspect

Polish prosecutors have charged Roman Ż., a former business partner of missing BitBay founder Sylwester Suszek, with two offenses as the Zondacrypto investigation expands beyond 3,600 customer complaints.

Zondacrypto suspect faces two charges

According to a report published Monday, Roman Ż. was arrested on Saturday in Poland’s Silesia region before being taken to the National Prosecutor’s Office branch in Katowice for questioning.

Prosecutors charged him with two offenses, including fraud, according to his lawyer, Błażej Gazda. Authorities have not publicly described the second allegation or released a detailed account of the evidence supporting either charge.

Ż. denied the allegations and gave investigators an extensive statement, Gazda said. His lawyer described him as a former business partner of Suszek who helped manage BitBay before the exchange changed its name to Zonda in 2021.

During searches at the arrest location and Ż.’s registered address, officers seized valuable watches and documents tied to Zondacrypto’s operations. Poland’s Central Bureau for Combating Cybercrime and the Katowice regional police took part in the operation, according to the National Prosecutor’s Office.

Prosecutors ordered the arrest after learning that Ż. planned to travel to China, which they viewed as grounds for a flight risk. Gazda said the planned journey was a business trip and that his client had a return ticket dated Sept. 13.

Polish prosecutors intend to seek pretrial detention while the investigation continues. A court must decide whether the evidence and stated flight risk justify keeping Ż. in custody.

Exchange losses are estimated at $94 million

Founded by Suszek in 2014, BitBay developed into one of Poland’s best-known cryptocurrency exchanges before adopting the Zondacrypto name in 2021. The platform reported having more than 1 million registered users around the time of the rebrand.

Problems became public in early 2026 when customers began reporting delayed or frozen withdrawals. Zondacrypto acknowledged payment delays affecting some users in late February and suspended Bitcoin deposits on March 17, citing market volatility.

The exchange stopped trading in April, while its website went offline on April 23. Available market trackers later showed no active Zondacrypto trading pairs or reported trading volume, and the company-linked ZND token lost almost all of its value.

As crypto.news previously reported, prosecutors estimated customer losses at more than 350 million zlotys, equivalent to approximately $94 million at the reported exchange rate. The figure is considerably higher than the 35 million zlotys cited in some early accounts of the case.

Polish authorities opened their investigation in April over suspected large-scale fraud and money laundering. By June, prosecutors had received more than 3,600 complaints from customers who said they could not recover assets held on the platform.

Investigators have frozen €4 million held in one bank account, according to local media reports. Authorities have also secured more than 100 million zlotys in assets that could potentially support compensation claims, although no repayment process or final distribution has been announced.

The Estonian Financial Intelligence Unit initially restricted the license of BB Trade Estonia OÜ, the legal entity behind the exchange, preventing it from accepting new customer assets. A previous report said the regulator revoked the company’s operating license on June 29 after the earlier suspension.

Suszek disappearance forms part of the investigation

Suszek disappeared on March 10, 2022, after travelling to a meeting in Czeladź, Poland. He had left his executive position before Zondacrypto’s collapse, but authorities continue to examine events surrounding BitBay’s creation and early operations.

In August, prosecutors combined the Zondacrypto criminal investigation with the inquiry into Suszek’s disappearance. Authorities said information about BitBay’s management, ownership and financial activity could help investigators establish what happened to its founder.

Suszek’s family reportedly received messages claiming that he had been kidnapped and that the people responsible wanted a Bitcoin payment. Publicly available information has not established whether the messages were genuine, and no court has determined what happened to him.

Roman Ż. is at least the fifth person to face charges after prosecutors joined the two investigations. His past business relationship with Suszek and his reported role in managing BitBay place his activities within the period now being examined by investigators.

In a separate case dating to 2019, prosecutors accused Ż. of leading an organized criminal group and laundering 28 million zlotys through BitBay accounts, according to Polish news outlet Interia. The allegation relates to separate proceedings and has not been presented as proof of the charges filed in the Zondacrypto case.

Other Zondacrypto suspects remain under investigation

Ż.’s detention followed a series of arrests involving people allegedly connected to the exchange. Police detained stock-market investor Rafał Z., Jaromira W., and Anna P. during the previous week, and a court later approved their continued detention. All three denied the alleged offenses, according to local reports.

Polish Olympic Committee President Radosław Piesiewicz has also been charged with paid influence and favoring one group of Zondacrypto creditors over others while the exchange was approaching insolvency.

An Aug. 27 report on Piesiewicz said investigators were examining whether he received advance information that allowed him to withdraw his entire investment while other customers could not access their funds. Piesiewicz denied receiving preferential treatment and described himself as a victim of the platform.

The second allegation against Piesiewicz concerns a claim that he offered to use his contacts to help Zondacrypto address problems involving Poland’s Office of Competition and Consumer Protection. Investigators have also examined a €40,000 Patek Philippe watch allegedly purchased by former Zondacrypto chief Przemysław Kral before a meeting with Piesiewicz in Monaco.

Neither Piesiewicz nor Roman Ż. has been convicted in the Zondacrypto proceedings. Their legal status remains that of suspects while prosecutors collect evidence and the courts consider detention requests.

Poland’s crypto rules remain disputed

The case has entered Poland’s debate over how the country should apply the European Union’s Markets in Crypto-Assets framework. Proposed domestic legislation would have made the Polish Financial Supervision Authority, known as the KNF, the national supervisor for crypto companies.

On Sept. 4, Poland’s lower house fell 25 votes short of overriding President Karol Nawrocki’s third veto of the bill. The Poland crypto bill vote ended with 241 lawmakers supporting the override, 198 opposing it and three abstaining, below the 266 votes required.

Prime Minister Donald Tusk referred to testimony from the Zondacrypto investigation while urging lawmakers to support the legislation. Nawrocki has said he favors rules against fraud and financial crime but considers the government-backed proposal too restrictive for legitimate crypto businesses.

For U.S. users, the Polish criminal case and licensing dispute do not change access to American exchanges, spot crypto exchange-traded funds, or other U.S.-regulated investment products. The proceedings concern alleged conduct tied to a Polish-run, Estonian-registered exchange and enforcement actions taken by European authorities.

MiCA already applies across the European Union, with national regulators responsible for licensing, supervision and enforcement. Its transition period ended on July 1, leaving firms without authorization subject to service restrictions or an orderly closure.