A Russian-Israeli man accused of helping orchestrate the 2022 $190 million Nomad bridge hack is now facing extradition to the United States after being apprehended in Israel.
According to an Israeli news outlet, the suspect, Alexander Gurevich, returned to Israel on April 19 and was summoned shortly after for an extradition hearing at the Jerusalem District Court. U.S. prosecutors allege that he played a central role in exploiting a vulnerability in the Nomad bridge—a cross-chain token bridge—stealing around $2.89 million worth of crypto tokens
Gurevich was reportedly arrested on May 1 at Israel’s Ben-Gurion Airport while attempting to board a flight to Russia. His arrest followed an alleged attempt to conceal his identity by legally changing his name to “Alexander Block” just two days earlier and obtaining a passport under the new alias.
Numerous others later exploited the vulnerability in a wave of copycat attacks, pushing the total loss to approximately $190 million. Authorities believe Gurevich was in Israel during the initial hack, raising concerns that he may have executed the exploit from within the country.
Court documents also detail how, following the breach, Gurevich allegedly contacted Nomad’s chief technology officer, James Prestwich, via Telegram using a fake identity. He reportedly confessed to being an “amateur” hacker looking for weak points in crypto protocols and apologized for the disruption he caused. Gurevich then transferred roughly $162,000 to a designated recovery wallet but later demanded a $500,000 bounty for revealing the flaw—communications that abruptly ended without further contact.
A federal grand jury in the Northern District of California issued an eight-count indictment against Gurevich on August 16, 2023, citing several cyber-related offences, including money laundering and the transfer of stolen property. The United States formally requested his extradition in December 2024. If convicted, Gurevich could face up to 20 years in prison under U.S. law—penalties considered far more severe than those he might face in Israel.
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