14 DAY TRIAL // A 27-year-old Russian programmer named Eugene Anikin received a five-year suspended prison sentence today for his role in a major fraud operation that resulted in the theft of almost $10 million from US-based RBS WorldPay.
The RBS WorldPay cyberheist is considered one of the most sophisticated and well organized cyber fraud operations in history.
By abusing only 100 RBS WorldPay accounts with artificially inflated limits, fraudsters managed to withdraw almost $10 million from 2,100 ATMs located in 280 different cities around the world, all within a twelve-hour period.
In November 2009, a grand jury in Atlanta indicted Sergei Tsurikov, 25, of Tallinn, Estonia, Viktor Pleshchuk, 28, of St. Petersburg, Russia, Oleg Covelin, 28, of Chisinau, Moldova, and an unidentified individual referred only as "Hacker 3," for instrumenting the operation. Others were indicted for acting as money mules.
Eugene Anikin of Novosibirsk is believed to be the unidentified hacker. According to Russian investigators, he served as an intermediary between Viktor Pleshchuk, one of the masterminds behind the operation, and card counterfeiters.
Anikin pleaded guilty yesterday to offenses under Article 158 Section 4 of the Russian Criminal Code (large size robbery) which carry a punishment of up to ten years in prison.
At his hearing, the fraudster begged the judge for leniency. He mentioned he was already paying back money to RBS WorldPay and that the one year spent in custody has taught him a good lesson.
According to RIA Novosti, the judge decided to hand him a five-year suspended prison sentence with a three year probation period at the prosecution's recommendation, so he can continue to repair the damage caused.
Viktor Pleshchuk, the other Russian national involved in the cyberheist, received a six-year suspended prison sentence last year after collaborating with the investigators. The Russian constitution explicitly prevents the extradition of the country's citizens.