Operation "Maple Disruption 2025" coordinated over 3,000 disruptive actions against fraud enablers
From December 8-11, this year's sprint brought fraud fighters from over 25 organizations across Canada and the NCFTA in Pittsburgh. Maple Disruption partners worked together to identify instances of suspected fraud and coordinated over 3,000 disruptive actions.
Two Miscreants Involved in $26m Elder Fraud Scheme Indicted
Trevaughn Yearwood, a/k/a Larry Wood of Florida, and Amit Jumar of Virginia have been indicted in the Western District of Pennsylvania for their part in a $26 million money laundering scheme. The scheme included deceptive emails that lead victims to hand over cash or make deposits of cash into bitcoin ATMs. The case originated during a private sector and law enforcement training event hosted by NCFTA.
Two Virginia Men Arrested for Conspiring to Destroy Government Databases
On December 3, 2025, brothers Muneeb and Sohaib Akhter of Alexandria, Virginia, were arrested for their roles in a conspiracy to destroy government databases hosted by a federal government contractor, among other crimes.
Cryptocurrency Mixing Service 'Cryptomixer' Unplugged by EU Authorities
Another one bites the dust: From November 24-28, Europol supported an action week conducted by law enforcement authorities from Switzerland and Germany in Zurich, Switzerland. The operation focused on taking down the illegal cryptocurrency mixing service ‘Cryptomixer’, which is suspected of facilitating cybercrime and money laundering.
Mr. Honesty can't live up to his name. Sentenced to four years in prison for his role in multiple cybercrimes and fraud schemes.
Marco Honesty was sentenced to four years in prison on May 23, 2025, for multiple cybercrimes and fraud schemes including: Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) fraud resulting in more than $500,000 loss to the SBA, smishing and bank account takeovers, fraudulent money orders, and identify theft.
California Conspirators Funneled $59m in Unemployment Compensation Benefits to China
Defendants and others entered into a series of agreements to make it appear as if they were operating legitimate businesses selling masks and other COVID19 personal protective equipment. In reality, the funds that the defendants obtained and laundered through their companies were derived from fraudulently obtained state unemployment compensation (“UC”) benefits. According to the indictment, unnamed members of the conspiracy, including some believed to be located in China, established thousands of accounts at banks across the United States using the personal identifying information (“PII”) of identity theft victims. From there, fraudulent UC claims were generated and paid to these accounts.
New York State's First-Ever Missing Child Rescue Operation Results in Successful Location of 47 Children Reported Missing in Erie County
The New York State Division of Criminal Justice Services (DCJS) today announced that 47 children who were reported missing in Erie County have been located through a first-of-its-kind Missing Child Rescue Operation in the state.
Nigerian Man Arrested in Alleged $10 Million Pandemic Unemployment Assistance Fraud Scheme
BOSTON – A Nigerian man was arrested on Aug. 13, 2024 upon arriving at John F. Kennedy International Airport in New York City on charges that he, and others, conspired to fraudulently obtain at least $10 million in COVID-19 unemployment benefits.
SENTENCED! : Kentucky Man Who Faked His Own Death Sentenced to 81 Months for Cyber Intrusion and Aggravated Identity Theft
UPDATE: On August 19, 2024, Jesse Kipf, 39, was sentenced to 81 months for computer fraud and aggravated identity theft. Kipf plead guilty to hacking into state death registry systems and private business, and selling access to networks on the dark web. Previously, in November 2023, Kipf, was indicted by a federal grand jury sitting in London, Kentucky on five counts of computer fraud, three counts of aggravated identity theft, and two counts of making false statements on applications in connection with federally insured financial institutions.
Belarusian-Ukrainian Cybercriminal known as "J.P. Morgan" faces decades in prison after being extradited from Poland.
Following an extensive international law enforcement investigation, Maksim Silnikau, aka "J.P. Morgan" was extradited to the U.S. from Poland. Silnikau is believed to be one of the world's most prolific Russian-speaking cybercrime actors and the founder of ransomware-as-a-service group Reveton. The U.K. National Crime Agency (NCA), FBI, Secret Service, Guardia Civil of Spain, Security Service of Ukraine Cyber Department and many other law enforcement agencies coordinated on the investigation.
Operation Chakra-II: India's CBI takes Action to dismantle major cyber crime network, arrests 43
India's Central Bureau of Investigation arrests 43 and disrupts major international criminal call center responsible for targeting victims globally.
UK Arrests Suspected Scattered Spider Hacker Linked to MGM Attack
UK police have arrested a 17-year-old boy suspected of being involved in the 2023 MGM Resorts ransomware attack and a member of the Scattered Spider hacking collective...the arrest is part of a broader investigation conducted by the National Crime Agency and the FBI into a hacking group known to breach networks, steal data, and deploy ransomware in extortion schemes.
911 S5 Botnet Dismantled and Its Administrator Arrested in Coordinated International Operation
YunHe Wang, a People's Republic of China national, was arrested on May 24 on charges that he created and operated the world's largest botnet and deployed malware across millions of residential Windows computers worldwide. Wang generated millions of dollars by offering cybercriminals access to these infected computers for a fee.
Man Arrested in Multi-State Sex Trafficking Ring; 3 Victims Found at Monroeville, PA Motel
MONROEVILLE, Pa. — A man has been arrested in connection to a multi-state sex trafficking ring, and investigators said three victims were found at a motel in Monroeville.
Police Raid “Skimmer Manufacturing Lab” in Houston Airbnb, Charge Romanian Suspects Who Crossed Canadian Border
Four suspects, believed to be connected to Romanian crime families, have been charged in connection to a card skimming scheme. The group allegedly crossed the border from Canada into Vermont and cut off their court-ordered GPS ankle monitors before placing credit card skimmers at several locations while temporarily staying in Houston, according to court documents.
RUSSIAN NATIONAL PLEADS GUILTY TO OPERATING ILLEGAL PROXY SERVICE THAT INFECTED TENS OF THOUSANDS OF INTERNET-CONNECTED DEVICES
Sergei Makinin, a Russian and Moldovan national, pled guilty to three counts of knowingly causing the transmission of a program that intentionally caused damage without authorization to protected computers.
Qakbot Malware Disrupted in International Cyber Takedown
Qakbot malware infected more than 700,000 victim computers, facilitated ransomware deployments, and caused hundreds of millions of dollars in damage. The action represents the largest U.S.-led financial and technical disruption of a botnet infrastructure leveraged by cybercriminals to commit ransomware, financial fraud, and other cyber-enabled criminal activity.
SoCal Skimmer Gets Prison for Million-Dollar Financial Identity Theft Scheme
A Los Angeles resident was sentenced to 41 months in prison for repeatedly installing at least 54 skimming devices at gas pumps throughout Southern California. Haykaz Mansuryan is the third co-conspirator in this scheme to be sentenced. Two additional defendants are presently set for a jury trial. One defendant, Petros Armutyan, remains a fugitive. The remaining 3 defendants are pending sentencing.
Justice Department Investigation Leads to Shutdown of Largest Online Darknet Marketplace
Russian Resident Indicted on Conspiracy Charges Related to Operating Hydra Market