The U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) has charged a 22-year-old Canadian man, Andean Medjedovic, with stealing around $65 million in cryptocurrency. Prosecutors say he hacked two decentralized finance (DeFi) platforms—Indexed Finance in 2021 and KyberSwap in 2023. They also accuse him of trying to extort KyberSwap and laundering stolen funds through complex transactions.
Medjedovic remains at large, and law enforcement agencies are searching for him.
Medjedovic Manipulated Smart Contracts To Hack The Indexed Finance Systems
DeFi platforms allow users to trade digital assets without intermediaries like banks. These platforms rely on smart contracts—self-executing programs that manage transactions based on pre-set conditions. Medjedovic allegedly found weaknesses in these smart contracts and used them to manipulate the system for personal gain.
In October 2021, prosecutors say Medjedovic exploited Indexed Finance, a platform that allowed users to invest in token-based funds. He borrowed large amounts of digital tokens and used a deceptive trading strategy to manipulate the platform’s smart contract calculations. This tricked the system into valuing assets incorrectly, allowing him to withdraw around $16.5 million from investors.
At the time, he did not hide his involvement. He publicly admitted to the attack and argued that he did not break any laws. He followed the controversial “code is law” belief, which suggests that if a smart contract allows a trade, it is fair game, even if it harms others.
An excerpt from the indictment claims Medjedovic discussed the legality of his alleged actions. Source: US Department of JusticeAnother well-known hacker, Avraham “Avi” Eisenberg, used the same defense after stealing $110 million from Mango Markets in 2022. However, a U.S. jury found Eisenberg guilty of fraud and market manipulation. He now faces up to 20 years in prison.
After Two Years, Hacker Exploited Another DeFi Platform KyberSwap
Two years after the Indexed Finance attack, prosecutors say Medjedovic carried out another exploit on KyberSwap, a major DeFi platform. He allegedly planned the attack for months, writing notes to himself like “Find time to strike!” and creating a “POST-EXPLOITATION” plan.
Medjedovic tricked KyberSwap’s system into miscalculating key financial variables using a similar strategy to the first hack. This allowed him to drain $48.8 million from 77 liquidity pools across multiple blockchains, including Ethereum and Arbitrum.
After the KyberSwap hack, prosecutors say Medjedovic tried to extort the platform’s developers and investors.
Extortion Allegations Following KyberSwap Hack
Instead of returning all the stolen funds, he proposed a “sham settlement proposal.” He threatened to delay negotiations in on-chain messages and demanded control over the KyberSwap protocol. In exchange, he offered to return only 50% of the stolen assets.
Authorities believe this was an attempt to pressure the victims into a deal that would benefit him while allowing him to keep a large portion of the stolen funds.
The indictment also reveals that he tried to hide his stolen money by using crypto mixers, tools that make transactions harder to trace. He allegedly worked with a relative to move funds through different blockchains and then cash out through fake accounts.
In one case, prosecutors say Medjedovic paid an undercover agent $85,000 to unlock frozen crypto funds.
Medjedovic on the Run
Since December 2021, Medjedovic has been a fugitive. A Canadian court issued a warrant for his arrest, but he has managed to avoid capture. He had been moving between Europe, South America, and an unnamed island nation to stay ahead of authorities.
A spokesperson for the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Brooklyn confirmed that Medjedovic remains at large and is not believed to be in the U.S.
Medjedovic faces five charges, including wire fraud, unauthorized computer damage, extortion, and money laundering. Each money laundering and fraud charge carries a maximum sentence of 20 years, while the computer damage charge has a 10-year maximum sentence. If convicted on all counts, Medjedovic could face up to 90 years in prison.
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