Israeli crypto suspect extradited to U.S. over $186 million Nomad hack
Alexander Blok is accused of using a software vulnerability to withdraw $2.8 million in tokens before other users drained more than $186 million from a Nomad-controlled wallet. His extradition follows a Supreme Court ruling on the scope of Israeli computer-crime and money-laundering law.
Alexander Blok (Gurevich), an Israeli citizen who also holds Russian citizenship, was extradited to the United States early Thursday morning. He is suspected of exploiting a security vulnerability in a cryptocurrency system to steal tokens worth approximately $2.8 million. His actions allegedly exposed the flaw to other users, who subsequently withdrew digital assets worth more than $186 million, draining a wallet controlled by Nomad. Blok will stand trial in the United States on charges including fraud, computer-related offenses, theft and money laundering.
Blok was arrested at Ben Gurion Airport in May 2025 while en route to Russia. According to the U.S. extradition request, he identified a vulnerability in the Nomad system in late July 2022. Nomad operates a cryptocurrency bridge, a platform that enables assets to be transferred between different blockchain networks by locking assets on one network and issuing corresponding tokens on another.
Prosecutors allege that Blok modified the computer code used to verify whether assets had been locked, causing the system to issue him digital tokens without the required underlying collateral. After confirming that the system failed to detect the alteration, he withdrew tokens worth approximately $2.8 million from a Nomad-controlled wallet on August 1, 2022. He then converted the tokens into other cryptocurrencies and transferred them between multiple digital wallets in an effort to conceal the origin of the funds.
According to the U.S. investigation, Blok’s actions exposed the vulnerability to other Nomad users, enabling them to drain a wallet holding digital assets belonging to other users. The resulting theft amounted to more than $186 million.
Several days later, Blok returned some of the tokens to Nomad. He then contacted a senior company official via Telegram and offered to return the remaining tokens in exchange for payment for identifying and reporting the vulnerability. The parties began negotiations, but Blok eventually cut off contact, prompting Nomad to approach U.S. law enforcement authorities.
During the extradition proceedings, the Jerusalem District Court ruled that Blok was eligible for extradition. The Supreme Court rejected his appeal, establishing a legal precedent that the term “intrusion into computer material” should be interpreted broadly enough to encompass the exploitation of security vulnerabilities and programming errors.
The Supreme Court also ruled that the public nature of blockchain networks does not, in itself, preclude a money-laundering charge. Although transactions are publicly recorded, wallet owners may remain anonymous, and transfers between wallets can make it harder to trace the movement of funds. Blok’s petition for a further hearing before the Supreme Court was subsequently denied.
The extradition case was handled by Adv. Avi Kronenberg of the International Department of the State Attorney’s Office.
