03.07.2025 19:23

UAE authorities have apprehended Ildar Ilham, the founder of WhiteRock, in a significant development related to the ZKasino rug pull scandal. This arrest, announced today, stems from allegations of his involvement in the $30 million cryptocurrency fraud. The UAE intends to extradite Ilham to the Netherlands, where other ZKasino executives are currently standing trial, ensuring a centralized prosecution for this complex case.

Following the arrest announcement, the price of WhiteRock's token (WHITE) plummeted by over 30%. This sharp decline reflects the market's immediate reaction to the confirmed link between WhiteRock and the ZKasino scam. The cryptocurrency community is now intensifying its calls for major exchanges like MEXC and Gate.io to delist WHITE, citing concerns about their initial listing of the token given the growing evidence of its association with fraudulent activities.

The ZKasino rug pull, a notorious event in the cryptocurrency world, resulted in substantial financial losses for numerous investors. Investigations into the scam have been ongoing for a considerable period, with recent allegations from crypto investigator ZachXBT playing a crucial role in bringing WhiteRock into the spotlight. These allegations, based on blockchain data analysis linking WhiteRock to ZKasino, have now been substantiated by Ilham's arrest.

While authorities haven’t yet publicly revealed further details about the investigation or new evidence, the existing on-chain connections previously highlighted between WhiteRock and ZKasino proved sufficiently compelling to warrant Ilham's arrest and planned extradition. This situation underscores the ongoing challenges in regulating the cryptocurrency space and the efforts required to hold perpetrators of fraudulent schemes accountable. The lack of transparency surrounding the relationship between ZKasino and WhiteRock has exacerbated the concerns of the community and fueled calls for increased scrutiny of cryptocurrency listings on major exchanges. The situation remains highly fluid, with the outcomes of the extradition and the exchanges’ responses still pending.