The US Attorney’s Office has charged Russian citizen Vladimir Zdorovenin with computer fraud, credit card fraud and illegal securities transactions. Last spring, he was detained in Switzerland and then extradited to the U.S. authorities. According to the investigation, the Muscovite Zdorovenin and his son Kirill created shell companies in the United States and, having gained access to the credit cards of customers, managed to steal “hundreds of thousands of dollars”. On the aggregate of charges, the Russian faces 142 years in prison. His son is on the wanted list.
Vladimir Zdorovenin was brought to New York last Monday and yesterday appeared in federal court in the Southern District of Manhattan. However, the first hearing in the case took no more than ten minutes: in response to a question from Judge Gabriel Gorenstin, the suspect refused to plead guilty and said he had no money to pay for a lawyer. The 54-year-old Muscovite specified that he was a doctor of sciences, explaining that he did not speak English and needed the services of a court interpreter.
Vladimir Zdorovenin was arrested on March 27 last year in Zurich, and last Monday he was extradited to the United States by decision of the Swiss authorities. According to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York, father and son Zdorovenin had been involved in computer fraud since at least 2004. While in Moscow, they registered Sofeco LLC, Pintado LLC, Tallit LLC, Novitex Corp. and Rauna Ltd. in the United States, offering goods over the Internet. Customers paid with credit cards, the data of which Mr. Zdorovenin then used to steal money. According to the investigation, they managed to embezzle “hundreds of thousands of dollars” from March 2004 to March 2005 alone. At the same time, the defendants bought credit card data and used phishing computer programs that read confidential information. The funds received by the father and son were transferred to accounts opened with JP Morgan Chase and Asia Europe Americas Bank. Another account for the company Lemery Group Ltd. was opened by them in the Latvian Lateko.
The 24-page indictment in case 07-cr-00440 states that Vladimir Zdorovenin controlled the company RimInvestManagement and was engaged in the sale of securities through the brokerage firm Ameritrade. According to the prosecutor’s office, the father and son illegally used their clients’ funds to buy up shares. The Zdorovenin family preferred to deal exclusively with high-tech companies. Terayon Communications Systems and Internet Capital Group are on the list of victims of fraudulent actions.
Mr. Zdorovenin was charged back in May 2007, but for several years the father and son managed to evade the investigation. However, court documents suggest that the American law enforcement agencies were keeping tabs on them. In any case, the indictment mentions a meeting between Mr. Zdorovenin and some business partners in Cyprus in July 2004. The Southern District Prosecutor’s Office found that after that, $300,000 was transferred from a bank in the United States to the accounts of a company controlled by the family.
“Mr. Zdorovenin’s egregious behavior demonstrates exactly how underground cybercrime operates,” said Janice Fedarsik, head of the FBI’s New York office, on the eve of the trial. ”But this case should remind anyone who thinks they can hide behind a secure and anonymous IP address in Russia that the FBI can reach them.
Vladimir Zdorovenin has been charged with nine counts, including identity theft, fraud and money laundering. Collectively, the Russian faces up to 142 years in prison. Meanwhile, the Russian authorities do not yet have information that Vladimir Zdorovenin is going to be tried in New York. Alexander Otchaynov, vice-consul of the Russian diplomatic mission, explained to Kommersant that the American side has not yet officially notified the consulate about the extradition of the Russian citizen from Switzerland. “According to the Vienna Convention, they have three days to send a note. After that we will be able to find out all the circumstances of the case and provide the accused with the necessary assistance,” – said Mr. Otchainov.
Source: https://www.kommersant.ru/doc/1853704