Compliance officer fired for breaching attachment order, accused of demanding €44,000 ransom for sensitive data

A former compliance officer with a Malta-registered crypto firm has been remanded in custody, accused of extortion and disclosing information about an attachment order to the individual being targeted by it.

Jose Luis Alonso Melchor, 33, appeared in court on Thursday, charged with money laundering, disclosing information likely to prejudice the effectiveness of an attachment order, breaching the attachment order, extortion in his capacity as a public servant, extorting money by threatening to defame a third party, unauthorised use of computer equipment belonging to his employer, unauthorised output of data or documentation to the prejudice of his employer, mankind unauthorised copies of that data or documentation, taking possession of, tampering with and disclosing that data.

Melchor was arraigned before Magistrate Nadia Vella on Thursday, having been arrested on the strength of a European Arrest Warrant issued in his name.

The court was told that Melchor, who worked as a compliance officer at Foris Dax MT, the company behind cryptocurrency website www.crypto.com, had been dismissed after his employers discovered that he had breached the attachment order.

After being fired, the man had allegedly sent a number of emails to his former employer, threatening to publish sensitive information which he had acquired as part of his compliance officer job, unless it paid him €44,000 as compensation for terminating his employment.

The defendant pleaded not guilty to the charges.

Defence lawyers, Joe and Michaela Giglio, made a request for bail, which was opposed by prosecution on the grounds that the defendant posed a flight risk.

The court ultimately rejected the bail request and ordered that the man be remanded in custody. The prosecution’s request that a €2,044,00 freezing order be imposed on Melchor was upheld.

Prosecutors Kenneth Camilleri and Daniel Vancell from the Office of the Attorney General assisted police inspectors Lianne Bonello and Marcus Cachia.

Lawyers Stefano Filletti and Maurice Meli assisted Foris Dax MT.