14 DAY TRIAL // A UK judge has sentenced two members of the Dridex gang to 12 years in prison each, for laundering over £2.5 million ($3.2 million) funds stolen using the Dridex malware.
The two crooks are Pavel Gincota, 32, and Ion Turcan, 35, both from the Republic of Moldova, but who traveled to the UK using a dual Moldovan-Romanian citizenship.
Gincota and Turcan were two of the many Dridex money mules
For two years, between 2013 and 2015, Gincota and Turcan acted as "money mules," a term used to describe common criminals that launder money stolen by the real Dridex gang, keeping a cut for themselves.
The Dridex gang provided the crooks with access to compromised bank accounts, which Gincota and Turcan used to transfer funds to bank accounts under their control, from where they bought expensive products, withdrew money via ATMs, or transferred the proceeds to the Dridex operators.
The UK National Crime Agency and the Metropolitan Police Service said the two individuals controlled more than 220 bank accounts.
Authorities arrested the two back in February 2015, when multiple false identity documents were found in their possession. Police found this suspicious, and after a search of the crooks' apartment, they discovered even more fraudulent documents and several electronic devices, including a laptop that Gincota used to access the hacked bank accounts.
Confronted with the overwhelming evidence, the two pleaded guilty and were sentenced yesterday to 12 years in prison.
Money mules are a dime a dozen
Gincota and Turcan were by no means the heads of the Dridex gang; on the contrary, they played one of the lowest and least-significant role in the Dridex operation.
The Dridex crew can easily replace the two with any other common crook willing to take the risks. There are many criminals who offer similar "cash mule" services on underground hacking forums.
In July, UK authorities sent to prison five Russian nationals who also acted as cash mules for an unnamed Russia cyber-crime group.