BitInstant CEO Arrested

Accused of money laundering

Charles Shrem, who ran a New York-based Bitcoin exchange company, was arrested Monday and charged with engaging in a money laundering scheme with a user of Silk Road, the notorious deep web black market.

In the federal criminal complaint, the Southern District of New York charges Shrem, the CEO of BitInstant, with three counts, including one count operating an unlicensed money transmitting business, one count of money laundering conspiracy and one count willful failure to file suspicious activity report.  Robert Faiella, a Silk Road user who operated under the name "BTCKing," was charged with one count of operating an unlicensed money transmitting business and one count money laundering conspiracy.