A 34-year-old Russian-Canadian citizen has been sentenced to approximately 4 years in criminal prison in Canada for his involvement in the global LockBit ransomware operation.
Mikhail Vasiliev, an Ontario resident, was first arrested in November 2022 and charged by the U. S. Department of Justice (DoJ) with “conspiring with others to knowingly damage computers and deliver ransom demands as part of this operation. “
News of Vasiliev’s criminal sentencing was first reported via CTV News.
The defendant, whose home was searched by Canadian authorities in August and October 2022, allegedly maintained a list of “potential or historical” victims and screenshots of communications exchanged with “LockBitSupp” on the Tox messaging platform.
The raid also uncovered a text log containing commands to deploy the LockBit ransomware, the source code for the ransomware, and a dashboard used through the e-crime organization to spread the record-locking malware.
Vasiliev, according to CTV News, pleaded guilty to 8 counts of cyber extortion, mischief and firearms last month. In handing down the sentence, he described himself through Judge Michelle Fuerst as a “cyberterrorist” “motivated by his own greed. “
He allegedly became a cybercriminal during the COVID-19 pandemic, attempting to download a ransom from three Canadian companies between 2021 and 2022 by stealing their data and holding them hostage.
Vasiliev, who agreed to be extradited to the United States, also ordered the return of more than $860,000 in restitution.
One of the most prolific ransomware groups in history, LockBit suffered a major blow in February 2024, when its infrastructure was seized as part of a coordinated police operation. This disruption was accompanied by the arrest of three LockBit subsidiaries in Poland and Ukraine.
Although the organization has resurfaced with a new data breach site, there is evidence to suggest that the new indexed victims are old or fake, designed to make the organization look like it’s up and running again.
The progression comes as a federal jury in Washington, D. C. convicted Roman Sterlingov, a dual Russian-Swedish national, for his exploitation of Bitcoin Fog from 2011 to 2021, facilitating the laundering of proceeds from the sale of illegal narcotics, cybercrime, and theft. child sexual abuse identities and material.
Ilya Lichtenstein, who pleaded guilty in August 2023 to the theft of about 120,000 bitcoins in connection with the Bitfinex cryptocurrency hack, testified last month how he used Bitcoin Fog 10 times to launder virtual assets, Bloomberg reported.
“Bitcoin Fog is the oldest cryptocurrency ‘mixer,’ gaining notoriety as a cash-laundering service for criminals looking to hide their illicit proceeds from authorities,” the DOJ said.
“In its ten years of activity, Bitcoin Fog has moved more than 1. 2 million bitcoins, valued at around $400 million at the time of transactions. “
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