Deutsche Welle,
10 May 2013
Seven men face charges related to a global cyber crime ring that stole $45 million in one of the biggest bank heists in history. The heist is believed to have involved hundreds of people and 27 countries.
Seven men face charges related to a global cyber crime ring that stole $45 million in one of the biggest bank heists in history. The heist is believed to have involved hundreds of people and 27 countries.
Several US
citizens were arraigned on Monday on charges stemming from their alleged role
in the formation of a New York-based cell of a larger, international cyber
crime ring. They face charges of withdrawing cash from ATMs and transporting
money, to the tune of $2.4 million.
"In
the place of guns and masks, this cyber crime organization used laptops and the
Internet," US Attorney for the Eastern District of New York Loretta Lynch
said at a news conference, referring to the crime as a "massive
21st-century bank heist."
One cell in
larger ring
In all, the
global crime ring stole $45 million (34.5 million euros) from two Middle
Eastern banks by hacking into credit card processing firms and withdrawing
money from ATMs in 27 countries, US prosecutors said on Thursday.
US
authorities pinpointed eight suspects in New York, all residents of Yonkers,
and arrested seven of them. The eighth, allegedly a leader of the New York
cell, was reported to have been murdered in the Dominican Republic on April 27.
The seven
facing charges include Jael Mejia Collado, Joan Luis Minier Lara, Evan Jose
Peña, Jose Familia Reyes, Elvis Rafael Rodriguez, Emir Yasser Yeje and Chung
Yu-Holgui. All of the suspects, apart from Rodriguez, were arraigned on
Thursday and pleaded not guilty. The suspect who reportedly had been killed was
Alberto Yusi Lajud- Peña.
How it
worked
Authorities
said the crime ring hacked into the computers of two Mideast credit card
processors. One processor was cyber attacked in India in December 2012, and the
other, in the United States, was targeted this February.
Once they
infiltrated the systems, the hackers allegedly increased the available balance
and withdrawal limits on prepaid MasterCard debit cards issued by the Bank of
Muscat of Oman and the National Bank of Ras Al Khaimah PSC of the United Arab
Emirates.
Counterfeit
debit cards were then made and distributed to "cashers" around the
world. The cashers, in turn, siphoned millions from ATMs in just a few hours.
As for the
New York cell, the suspects are believed to have worked their way around New
York on February 19, completing 2,904 withdrawals and walking away with $2.4
million.
Prosecutors
said the so-called cashers often launder their proceeds by purchasing luxury
goods and sent a portion of the money back to the masterminds.
Lynch said
the New York-based suspects kept about 20 percent of the total they stole from
ATMs, sending the rest to the organizers. Police seized hundreds of thousands
of dollars in cash and bank accounts, as well as two Rolex watches and a
Mercedes SUV from the New York cell.
Worldwide,
some 36,000 ATM transactions resulted in the $45 million heist.
Lynch said
that US authorities are looking to see whether other cells of the crime ring
are operating in the United States.
She noted
that US officials had worked with their counterparts in Japan, Canada, Germany,
Romania, the United Arab Emirates, Dominican Republic, Mexico, Italy, Spain,
Belgium, France, the United Kingdom, Latvia, Estonia, Thailand, and Malaysia
during the investigation.
Authorities
would not say who masterminded the attacks or where they were located because
the investiation continues.
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