Polish prosecutors have formally charged Roman Ż., a former business associate of missing BitBay founder Sylwester Suszek, as the fifth suspect in the ongoing criminal investigation into the Zondacrypto cryptocurrency exchange. The charges include fraud and at least one additional offense, with authorities seeking pretrial detention amid concerns the suspect could leave the country.

Roman Ż. was detained on September 5 in Poland’s Silesian region and later questioned at the National Prosecutor’s Office branch in Katowice. Prosecutors cited a planned trip to China as grounds for viewing him as a flight risk. His lawyer, Błażej Gazda, stated that the journey was business-related and that his client held a return ticket dated September 13. Gazda said Roman Ż. denied the allegations and provided investigators with an extensive statement.

During searches of the arrest location and the suspect’s registered address, police seized valuable watches and documents connected to Zondacrypto operations. Officers from Poland’s Central Bureau for Combating Cybercrime and the Katowice regional police participated in the action.

Scope of the Charges and Alleged Conduct

According to statements from the National Prosecutor’s Office, the charges against Roman Ż. involve participation in an organized criminal group and the misappropriation of approximately 7.8 million Polish zlotys, equivalent to about $2.1 million, in user funds. Prosecutors allege unauthorized changes to computer records and interference with the processing and transmission of exchange data.

Roman Ż. previously worked closely with Suszek and is reported to have helped develop BitBay’s headquarters in Katowice and manage the platform before its rebranding. BitBay, founded by Suszek in 2014, operated with more than one million registered users around the time it adopted the Zondacrypto name in 2021.

Customer Losses and Exchange Collapse

Zondacrypto encountered severe operational difficulties earlier this year. Payment delays surfaced in February, Bitcoin deposits were suspended on March 17, trading halted in April, and the platform’s website went offline on April 23. Market data later showed no active trading pairs or volume, while a related token lost nearly all of its value.

Prosecutors estimate customer losses at no less than 350 million Polish zlotys, or roughly $94 million. By June, more than 3,600 complaints had been filed. Authorities are examining allegations of large-scale fraud and money laundering. Investigators have frozen approximately $4.4 million held in one bank account and secured more than 100 million Polish zlotys in assets that could potentially support compensation claims.

The Estonian company behind the exchange, BB Trade Estonia OÜ, saw its license partially suspended and later revoked. The entity was declared bankrupt in August, with the first creditors’ meeting scheduled for September 17.

Broader Investigation and Other Suspects

The Zondacrypto case was merged in July with a separate inquiry into the disappearance of Sylwester Suszek, who vanished in March 2022 after traveling to a meeting in Czeladź, Poland. Family members reportedly received messages claiming a kidnapping and demanding a Bitcoin payment, though the authenticity of those messages has not been established in court.

Three other individuals—identified in reports as Rafał Z., Jaromira W., and Anna P.—were detained on September 2 and charged with offenses including money laundering, misappropriation of company assets, and participation in an organized criminal group. A court ordered them held in pretrial detention for up to three months. All three have denied the allegations.

Separately, Radosław Piesiewicz, chairman of Poland’s Olympic Committee, faces charges related to paid influence and alleged preferential treatment of certain Zondacrypto creditors. Investigators have examined claims that he received advance information allowing him to withdraw funds while other customers could not, as well as allegations involving a high-value watch purchased before a meeting. Piesiewicz has denied wrongdoing and described himself as a victim of the platform.

A court will decide on the pretrial detention request for Roman Ż. filed with the Katowice-Wschód District Court. The investigation remains ongoing, with no convictions issued against any of the charged individuals to date.