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Ukraine has extradited an Uzbek citizen to the US who was hiding under a pseudonym and, under the guise of a secure cryptocurrency storage tool, stole users' private keys. After a hearing on preventive measures, the fraudster faces the maximum penalty of 20 years in prison. At the same time, the details of the arrest have not been disclosed, but it is known that he is charged with online fraud and illegal use of a device for unauthorized access to data. To ensure his arrest and extradition, the Office of International Affairs of the US Department of Justice cooperated with the authorities of Romania and Ukraine.
One of the victims is a New York resident who trusted the app. He lost nearly $12 million when the criminal gained control of a wallet containing more than 2 million EOS tokens. The cryptocurrency was instantly transferred to accounts controlled by the criminal. Without a trace and with no chance of recovery, because digital crimes have no borders.
Currently, the US Attorney's Office for the Western District of New York has officially confirmed that the citizen is a cybercriminal who, back in 2018, “pushed” a fake app called “EOSIO Wallet Explorer” to the App Store. Under the guise of a secure tool for storing cryptocurrency, the program stole users' private keys, giving access to their digital assets. Prosecutors note that this does not mean that any app can be turned into a tool for stealing cryptocurrency.
At the same time, the detainee is being investigated for links to an international gang that successfully carried out a series of thefts at bank branches in 2015-2016, stealing cash, crypto wallets, and valuables from individual lockers. The police have already figured out the gang's modus operandi: to get into the bank vault and do some recon, the accomplices rented bank boxes using real or fake documents. This way, they could visit the bank branch several times. Left alone near the bank boxes, one of the criminals used a borescope to photograph the inside of the safe lock. They then made a duplicate key. During their next visit, they checked whether the duplicate key could open the box and then proceeded to the final stage of the crime. The extent of his cooperation with the gang that stole crypto wallets from bank boxes will be announced later.
Although his name has become a symbol of digital fraud and the criminal case is an example of how a single downloaded application can turn into a tool for stealing cryptocurrency, justice has a long arm.
