(Washington, D.C.) Indictments were unsealed today in Boston and San Diego against11 individuals in a U.S. Secret Service investigation into what is believed to be the
largest hacking and identity theft case ever prosecuted in the United States. The high-profilecyber investigation by the Secret Service uncovered the theft and sale of more
than 40 million credit and debit card numbers from nine major U.S. retailers. Thedefendants three are U.S. citizens, one is from Estonia, three are from Ukraine, two are
from the Peoples Republic of China, one is from Belarus and one individual is onlyknown by an online alias are charged with numerous crimes, including conspiracy,
computer intrusion, fraud and identity theft.
Technology has forever changed the way commerce is conducted, virtually erasinggeographic boundaries, said U.S. Secret Service Director Mark Sullivan. While these
advances and the global nature of cyber crime continue to have a profound impact on ourfinancial crimes investigations, this case demonstrates how combining law enforcement
resources throughout the world sends a strong message to criminals that they will bepursued and prosecuted no matter where they reside.
In an indictment returned today, by a federal grand jury in Boston, Albert SegvecGonzalez, of Miami, was charged with computer fraud, wire fraud, access device fraud,
aggravated identity theft and conspiracy for his role in the scheme. Gonzalez waspreviously arrested by the Secret Service in 2003 for access device fraud. During the
course of this investigation, the Secret Service discovered that Gonzalez, who wasworking as a confidential informant for the agency, was criminally involved in the case.
Because of the size and scope of his criminal activity, Gonzalez faces a maximumpenalty of life in prison if he is convicted of all the charges alleged in the Boston
indictment.
Criminal informationswere also released today in Boston on related charges againstChristopher Scott and Damon Patrick Toey, both of Miami. The indictment
alleges that Gonzalez and his co-conspirators obtained the credit and debit card numbersby wardriving and hacking into the wireless computer networks of major retailers
including TJX Companies, BJs Wholesale Club, OfficeMax, Boston Market, Barnes &Noble, Sports Authority, Forever 21 and DSW. Once inside the networks, they installed
sniffer programs that would capture card numbers, as well as password and accountinformation, as they moved through the retailers credit and debit processing networks.
After they collected the data, the conspirators allegedly concealed the data in encryptedcomputer servers that they controlled in Eastern Europe and the United States. They
allegedly sold some of the credit and debit card numbers, via the Internet, to othercriminals in the United States and Eastern Europe.
Also today, indictments were unsealed in San Diego against scheme participants Maksym Maksik Yastremskiy, of Kharkov, Ukraine, and Aleksandr Jonny Hell Suvorov, of
Sillamae, Estonia. The indictments charge the defendants with crimes related to the saleof the stolen credit card data that Gonzalez and others illegally obtained, as well as
additional stolen credit card data. Suvorov is charged with conspiracy to possessunauthorized access devices, possession of unauthorized access devices, trafficking in
unauthorized access devices, identity theft, aggravated identity theft, and aiding andabetting. Yastremskiy is charged with trafficking in unauthorized access devices, identity
theft, aggravated identity theft and conspiracy to launder monetary instruments.
In addition, an indictment against Hung-Ming Chiu and Zhi Zhi Wang, both of thePeoples Republic of China, and a person known only by the online nickname
Delpiero, was also unsealed in San Diego today. Chiu, Wang and Delpiero arecharged with conspiracy to possess unauthorized access devices, trafficking in
unauthorized access devices, trafficking in counterfeit access devices, possession ofunauthorized access devices, aggravated identity theft, and aiding and abetting. Also in
San Diego, Sergey Pavolvich, of Belarus, and Dzmitry Burak and Sergey Storchak, bothof Ukraine, were charged in a criminal complaint with conspiracy to traffic in
unauthorized access devices. All are believed to be foreign nationals residing outside ofthe United States.
The San Diego indictments and complaints are the result of a three-year undercoverinvestigation conducted out of the San Diego Field Office of the U.S. Secret Service.
The charges allege that Yastremskiy, Suvorov, Chiu, Wang, Delpiero, Pavolvich, Burakand Storchak operated an international stolen credit and debit card distribution ring with
operations from Ukraine, Belarus, Estonia, the Peoples Republic of China, thePhilippines and Thailand. The indictments allege that each of the defendants sold stolen
credit and debit card information for personal gain.
In May 2008, Gonzalez, Suvorov and Yastremskiy also were charged in a relatedindictment in the Eastern District of New York. The New York charges allege that the
trio was engaged in a sophisticated scheme to hack into computer networks run by theDave & Busters restaurant chain, and stole credit and debit card numbers from at least
11 locations.
These significant arrests are the result of ongoing cooperation among investigatorsthroughout the Secret Service and our domestic and international law enforcement
partners, Director Sullivan added. We continue to effectively address evolving criminalmethods and transcend borders by combining our investigative resources.
The United States Secret Service was originally founded in 1865 for the purpose ofsuppressing the counterfeiting of U. S. currency. Over the years it has grown into one of the
premier law enforcement organizations charged with investigating financial crimes. TheSecret Service has taken a lead role in the developing area of cyber crime, establishing
working partnerships in both the law enforcement and business communities to address suchissues as protection of critical infrastructure, Internet intrusions and associated fraud.
Source: U.S. Secret Service