A member of an international cybercrime, identity theft and credit card fraud conspiracy was sentenced today to 92 months in prison for using information hacked from customer accounts held at more than a dozen banks, brokerage firms, payroll processing companies and government agencies in an attempt to steal at least $15 million from American customers, U.S. Attorney Paul J. Fishman announced.
Oleg Pidtergerya, 50, of Brooklyn, New York, previously pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Peter G. Sheridan to an information charging him with one count of wire fraud conspiracy and one count of conspiracy to commit access device fraud and identity theft. Judge Sheridan imposed the sentence today in Trenton federal court.
According to documents filed in the case and statements made in court:
Pidtergerya was asked by leaders of the conspiracy to participate in a scheme to “cash out” bank accounts and pre-paid debit cards opened in the names of others.
Oleksiy Sharapka, 34, of Kiev, Ukraine, allegedly directed the conspiracy with the help of Leonid Yanovitsky, 40, also of Kiev. Pidtergerya managed a cash out crew in New York for Sharapka and Yanovitsky.
Conspiring hackers first gained unauthorized access to the bank accounts of customers of more than a dozen global financial institutions and businesses, including: Aon Hewitt; Automatic Data Processing Inc.; Citibank N.A.; E-Trade; Electronic Payments Inc.; Fundtech Holdings LLC, iPayment Inc.; JP Morgan Chase Bank N.A.; Nordstrom Bank; PayPal; TD Ameritrade; U.S. Department of Defense, Defense Finance and Accounting Service; TIAA-CREF; USAA; and Veracity Payment Solutions Inc.
After obtaining unauthorized access to the bank accounts, Sharapka and Yanovitsky diverted money from them to bank accounts and pre-paid debit cards they controlled. They then employed crews of individuals known as “cashers” to withdraw the stolen funds from the fraudulent accounts, among other ways, by making ATM withdrawals and fraudulent purchases in New York, Massachusetts, Georgia and elsewhere. Both Sharapka and Yanovitsky are under indictment in the United States and remain at large.
Pidtergerya admitted he was aware fraudulent accounts and cards were created without the consent of the individuals in whose names they were opened.
He admitted coordinating ATM and bank withdrawals of the stolen funds. He also admitted to sending proceeds of the fraud to Sharapka and Yanovitsky in Ukraine.
The government’s ongoing investigation into the organization has so far identified attempts to defraud the victim companies and their customers of more than $15 million.
In addition to the prison term, Judge Sheridan sentenced Pidtergerya to three years of supervised release, ordered him to pay restitution of $1,758,127, and entered a forfeiture judgment of $250,000.
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