The Druzhinskiy–Levkovich duo, or the return of the tall “Blondin”

The Druzhinskiy–Levkovich duo, or the return of the tall “Blondin”

23 мая 2026 г.

Sergey Varchenko

The so-called “sweet couple” — US citizen Dmitriy Druzhinskiy and Ukrainian citizen Marina Levkovich-Ilyina-Ginzburg — are reportedly wanted by international law enforcement agencies in connection with alleged online casino fraud schemes.

According to available reports, Druzhinskiy is said to have been a protégé of Alimzhan Tokhtakhunov, known as “Taiwanchik,” a figure associated in media accounts with Russian organized crime. Years ago in the United States, Tokhtakhunov was described as a key participant in a transatlantic money-laundering network linked to sports betting, while the so-called “Dmitriy Druzhinskiy Organization,” allegedly operating under the nickname “Blondin,” was said to function within that sphere and facilitate the movement of illicit funds.

Now, however, Blondin Druzhinskiy has found himself at the center of scandal in Kazakhstan together with companion Marina Ginzburg, who also reportedly uses documents under the surnames “Ilyina” and “Levkovich.”

Kazakhstan’s Financial Monitoring Agency has placed Druzhinskiy and Levkovich on the wanted list, suspecting them of organizing illegal gambling operations in Kazakhstan. According to investigators, Druzhinskiy and Levkovich coordinated online casino activities through a network of affiliated companies and payment operators.

But judging by recent news, Blondin Druzhinskiy appears entirely unconcerned: he is reportedly living comfortably in the United States and recently even announced preparations for the 2028 Olympics in Los Angeles, which he himself is sponsoring — apparently with money “earned through hard labor” in Kazakhstan.

Arrested in absentia

The official version of the story surrounding the schemes of Druzhinskiy and Ginzburg was presented by Kazakhstan’s Financial Monitoring Agency.

According to investigators, under the guise of a legal betting business, a network of illegal online casinos linked to the Pin-Up and Pinco brands operated in Kazakhstan.

A key element of the scheme was Bonami LLP, which obtained an official bookmaker license in Kazakhstan. Formally, it was presented as a legal betting business.

The Druzhinskiy–Levkovich duo, or the return of the tall “Blondin”

Picture-perfect scene: Dmitriy Druzhinskiy and Marina Levkovich

Investigators believe that client funds were first accumulated in transit accounts, after which they passed through the payment companies Gold Pay and Cyber Pay (later renamed Pinnacle Financial Solutions), and were then converted into cryptocurrency.

More than $1 billion was moved through this system.

In January 2026, Dmitriy Druzhinskiy and Marina Levkovich were placed on the international wanted list.

As media outlets have already reported, Druzhinskiy and Levkovich were involved in organizing the payment infrastructure. In other words, they were allegedly connected not so much to the casino operations themselves, but to the most important element of the gambling business — the movement of money.

The Druzhinskiy–Levkovich duo, or the return of the tall “Blondin”

Later, the court authorized the arrest in absentia of Druzhinskiy and his blonde companion.

The Druzhinskiy–Levkovich duo, or the return of the tall “Blondin”

That is why investigators are focusing not only on the bookmaker itself, but also on the financial “intermediaries.”

It was precisely at the processing stage that the structures Gold Pay, Cyber Pay, and Pinnacle Financial Solutions emerged.

For a classic illegal casino, this was almost a perfect model: formally there was a license and a payment service, while in reality it functioned as an international money-moving machine.

The scheme itself was simple — or rather primitive.

Users deposited money through a formally legal betting infrastructure, after which the funds passed through a chain of payment companies. The purpose of the payments was disguised as legitimate transactions. The money was then split into smaller amounts.

The Druzhinskiy–Levkovich duo, or the return of the tall “Blondin”

Criminal duo: Druzhinskiy–Levkovich

The money was then routed through cryptocurrency channels and moved outside Kazakhstan.

Dmitriy Druzhinskiy — the fake KGB agent

While Kazakhstan is searching for alleged fraudster Dmitriy Druzhinskiy, Mr. Druzhinskiy himself — a US citizen — presents himself as a philanthropist and organizer of athlete training programs for the 2028 Olympics.

He is not hiding, living openly and comfortably.

In addition to the nickname “Blondin,” he is also known as “Mitya.”

This agile 55-year-old man may allegedly be directly connected to Dmitriy Dmitriyevich Druzhinskiy (born in 1939), the scandal-ridden FBI operative known as the main “fake KGB/GRU agent.”

From the 1960s until the late 1990s, the elder Dmitriy Druzhinskiy, who reportedly spoke nine languages fluently, posed as a KGB officer and assisted in catching spies and terrorists. He allegedly participated in 50 operations and helped send 25 spies to prison.

He became known for the operation against aircraft hijacker Fawaz Younis, as well as the Robert Lipka case involving a clerk accused of selling secret information to the KGB.

The activities of the elder Druzhinskiy were covered by Kommersant back in 1997.

It turns out that the younger Druzhinskiy was born and raised in the United States, in the family of the main fake KGB/GRU operative.

His father began serving with the FBI in Quantico in 1968, while son Mitya was born in 1970.

The Druzhinskiy–Levkovich duo, or the return of the tall “Blondin”

The Druzhinskiy–Levkovich duo, or the return of the tall “Blondin”

And that is where the puzzle pieces seem to come together.

Now let us continue the story of the younger Druzhinskiy.

The Olympic competitions will take place from July 14 to July 30, 2028.

A key training venue will be the MatchPoint NYC sports complex in Brooklyn, which belongs to Mr. Druzhinskiy.

Incidentally, this luxury complex was opened in 2013 — the very same year when Blondin, who had allegedly been involved in the murky affairs of Taiwanchik, entered into a cooperation agreement with investigators.

The Druzhinskiy–Levkovich duo, or the return of the tall “Blondin”

Alimzhan Tokhtakhunov, also known as Taiwanchik, mentor of Dmitriy Druzhinskiy, the son of an FBI agent

The 120,000-square-foot MatchPoint NYC complex is located in South Brooklyn. Prestigious competitions and charity events are held there. The MatchPoint NYC infrastructure includes a fitness center for cardio and strength training, a rhythmic gymnastics center, a basketball court, and more. After training sessions, visitors can dine at the center’s restaurant.

The complex also features a tennis center with nine courts. Well-known tennis players such as Dinara Safina, Kateryna Bondarenko, and Aleksandr Nedovyesov have trained there.

The Druzhinskiy–Levkovich duo, or the return of the tall “Blondin”

Blondin with young athletes (far right)

For many years, Druzhinskiy has sponsored young athletes, including Ukrainian tennis player Anhelina Kalinina.

Druzhinskiy also supports the Ukrainian national freestyle wrestling team.

What a perfect “showcase.”

Blondin, Murashka, and Orakul

But let us return several years back, when Blondin was running the so-called Druzhinskiy Organization.

It was a large international criminal group that allegedly served as a key element in a massive network of illegal gambling, sports betting, and money laundering between the United States, Russia, Ukraine, and Cyprus.

The “Druzhinskiy Organization” was directly linked in New York to the “offices” of Taiwanchik, as it was allegedly one of the main structures carrying out shadow operations under Tokhtakhunov’s leadership.

Druzhinskiy’s group reportedly accepted bets worth millions of dollars from elite clients both from CIS countries and the United States.

Tens of millions of dollars in illegal profits, including funds moved through the accounts of the “Druzhinskiy Organization,” were allegedly transferred into the United States and legalized through shell companies, art galleries, and Cyprus banks.

Soon afterward, prosecutors in the Southern District of New York brought charges against Alimzhan Tokhtakhunov.

According to investigators, he directed the activities of two international criminal organizations involved in organizing illegal gambling operations in the United States.

The Druzhinskiy–Levkovich duo, or the return of the tall “Blondin”

Alimzhan Tokhtakhunov

US authorities carried out large-scale investigations involving representatives of several American intelligence and law enforcement agencies.

As a result, 34 members of international criminal groups were arrested in New York, Philadelphia, Detroit, and Los Angeles.

All detainees were charged with money laundering and organizing illegal gambling operations within the United States.

Investigators estimated the damages at $100 million.

According to investigators, debts owed by clients of the criminal organization ranged from hundreds of thousands to millions of dollars.

To repay one such debt, a particularly азартный gambler was reportedly forced to transfer management rights to his company, which operated in the Bronx water supply sector.

That company was valued at $2 million.

The Druzhinskiy–Levkovich duo, or the return of the tall “Blondin”

The Bronx is one of New York City’s five boroughs.

“For dispute-resolution services alone, Tokhtakhunov managed to receive $10 million in just two months in 2011,” an official statement from prosecutors said.

It should also be recalled that back in 2002, US authorities accused Taiwanchik of attempting to bribe judges during the figure skating competition at the Salt Lake City Olympic Games.

At the request of US law enforcement agencies, Tokhtakhunov was arrested in Italy, but Italian authorities refused to extradite him to the United States.

After that, Taiwanchik quickly relocated to Moscow.

The United States stated that it would continue seeking the extradition of Alimzhan Tokhtakhunov, who could face up to 90 years in prison.

An outraged Tokhtakhunov told journalists that no criminal organization had existed, and that the people mentioned in the prosecutors’ list were simply his friends and partners in card games.

The gambling operations themselves were allegedly organized by the group headed by Dmitriy Druzhinskiy. This group included Aleksandr Zaverukha, Aleksandr Kachalov nicknamed “Murashka,” and a certain Artur Azen.

The “accounting department” was allegedly run by Anatoliy Golubchik, nicknamed “Tony,” and Noah Siegel, also known as “Orakul.”

Members of the group also allegedly controlled a network of underground poker clubs frequented by famous athletes, Hollywood stars, and Wall Street businessmen.

During the investigation, authorities secured cooperation from the owner of a well-known New York art gallery located in the five-star Carlyle Hotel, Hillel Nahmad.

The Druzhinskiy–Levkovich duo, or the return of the tall “Blondin”

The five-star Carlyle Hotel

Hillel Nahmad allegedly controlled a network of underground online casinos, while the illegal enterprise was financed by the art dealer’s father, billionaire David Nahmad, who lives in London.

Dmitriy Druzhinskiy and several members of the “Druzhinskiy Organization” pleaded guilty in court.

They entered into cooperation agreements with investigators in order to avoid maximum prison sentences.

The Druzhinskiy–Levkovich duo, or the return of the tall “Blondin”

Hillel Nahmad

But it appears that Blondin Mitya himself may not have received any real punishment at all, since in that same memorable year of 2013 he announced the opening of the MatchPoint NYC sports complex in Brooklyn.

So, after lying low for several years, he allegedly resurfaced with a new “project” in Kazakhstan together with companion Levkovich?

In the end, more than $1 billion was allegedly illegally moved out of Kazakhstan through banks and payment aggregators.

The Druzhinskiy–Levkovich duo, or the return of the tall “Blondin”

Marina Levkovich-Ginzburg

Some media outlets are now asking: where exactly did Druzhinskiy and Levkovich disappear to? Kazakhstan has placed them on the international wanted list.

But there is still no information about their detention — and it is unlikely to appear anytime soon.

It should be recalled that in December 2025, Kazakhstan law enforcement agencies conducted more than 70 searches in financial offices allegedly involved in the fake scheme. Materials in the criminal case reportedly mentioned representatives of 35 payment companies, as well as four banks through which the illegal operations were carried out.

In essence, Blondin Mitya — the son of an FBI agent — allegedly recreated another “Druzhinskiy Organization” in Kazakhstan, and for this Dmitriy Druzhinskiy did not even need to be physically present in Astana or Pavlodar.

The online casino network operating under the PIN-UP and PINCO brands was allegedly managed by a group of individuals from abroad through affiliated structures. According to investigators, the suspects coordinated the operation of the scheme: selecting accomplices, organizing cooperation with payment organizations and second-tier banks, and participating in the creation of infrastructure for accepting and moving funds.

The agency has asked citizens with information about the possible whereabouts of the wanted individuals to contact the duty office of Kazakhstan’s Financial Monitoring Agency at +7 7172 70 84 78.

The suspects were also accused of organizing underground poker clubs.

Last November, the BBC named Druzhinskiy among suspects who had entered into plea agreements with the authorities.