Two alleged Z-Library operators, Anton Napolsky and Valeriia Ermakova, who were accused by the United States of criminal copyright infringement, wire fraud, and money laundering, have reportedly escaped from house arrest in Argentina. The escape occurred after a judge approved their extradition to the United States. The Z-Library admins disappeared after filing an appeal at the Supreme Court of Justice seeking political refugee status to avoid being sent to the U.S. [a8ad975a].
The United States Department of Justice and the FBI had seized Z-Library's domains on November 4, 2022, as part of an operation to shut down the platform. Napolsky and Ermakova, both Russian citizens, were identified as the alleged operators of the site and were arrested in Argentina on November 3, 2022. They were under house arrest in Córdoba, Argentina, awaiting extradition to the United States. The extradition request included charges of criminal copyright infringement, wire fraud, and money laundering. The defense raised concerns about the evidence and the impartiality of the judge. A new judge ordered their extradition, but the pair filed an appeal to the Supreme Court of Justice seeking political refugee status. Oleg Andreevich Kulakov, another Russian seeking refugee status, is also involved in the case. The Z-Library admins disappeared while under house arrest, and an international arrest warrant has been issued for them [7fcc793f].
The escape of the Z-Library admins has shocked officials. The Patronato del Liberado agency in Argentina confirmed that the couple had escaped. The Z-Library team defended Napolsky and Ermakova as innocent and called their detention unfair and unacceptable. They believe that the U.S. should pursue each copyright infringement case on its site separately instead of targeting the whole platform for takedown. A petition has been created requesting access to seized Z-Library domains to be restored, with 146,000 signatures out of 150,000 sought [a8ad975a].