14 DAY TRIAL // The FBI announced that 33 individuals were arrested in connection with an international phishing gang that operated out of U.S. and Egypt. The indictment recently unsealed in a Los Angeles federal court charges a total of 53 people, while the Egyptian authorities have identified an additional 47 suspects.
The indictment and arrests are the result of a law enforcement operation codenamed Phish Phry that began back in 2007 and aimed at disrupting cyber criminal gangs targeting U.S. financial institutions. The FBI, the United States Attorney’s Office, the Electronic Crimes Task Force in Los Angeles and law enforcement agencies in Egypt participated in the investigation.
The Egyptian group was responsible for launching the phishing attacks, which used fake Web pages masquerading those of U.S. banks, including Bank of America and Well Fargo. Customers of these institutions were tricked into inputting their account and personal information on the websites.
The U.S. branch was allegedly led by Jenneth Joseph Lucas, Nichole Michelle Merzi and Jonathan Preston Clark, of California and performed unauthorized money withdrawals using the stolen information provided by their Egyptian friends. The defendants hired “runners” or “money mules,” people who would set up new accounts to receive the stolen funds and then cash them out. Part of the profits were then wired back to the Egypt cell.
Each of the individuals indicted in U.S. is charged with one count of conspiracy to commit bank fraud and wire fraud and faces a maximum of 20 years in federal prison. Some of them were also charged with bank fraud, conspiracy to commit computer fraud, aggravated identity theft or domestic and international money laundering, which further increases their possible sentences.
The Phish Phry operation resulted in the largest prosecution of a cyber-criminal gang in U.S. and marks the first collaboration in such matters between U.S. and Egyptian law enforcement agencies. “The FBI is grateful for the assistance of its law enforcement partners in the U.S. and the Egyptian government's dedicated cooperation, which illustrates that borders cease to exist among countries committed to the rule of law and to the protection of their citizens," Keith Bolcar, acting assistant director in charge of the Los Angeles FBI office, said.
"The sophistication with which Phish Phry defendants operated represents an evolving and troubling paradigm in the way identity theft is now committed," Mr. Bolcar concluded.