Defendant and Co-conspirators Hacked into Computer Systems
of Tax Preparation Companies and Stole Personal Information of Identity Theft
Victims
Earlier today in federal court in Brooklyn, an indictment
was returned charging Anton Bogdanov, a citizen of Russia, with wire fraud
conspiracy, aggravated identity theft and computer intrusion in connection with
a scheme in which he and others used stolen personal information to file
federal tax returns and fraudulently obtain more than $1.5 million in tax
refunds from the Internal Revenue Service.
Bogdanov was arrested on Phuket, Thailand, on November 28,
2018 pursuant to a provisional arrest request.
He was extradited to the United States in March 2019. Bogdanov will be arraigned at a later date.
Richard P. Donoghue, United States Attorney for the Eastern
District of New York, William F. Sweeney, Jr., Assistant Director-in-Charge,
Federal Bureau of Investigation, New York Field Office (FBI), and Jonathan D.
Larsen, Acting Special Agent-in-Charge, Internal Revenue Service-Criminal
Investigation, New York (IRS-CI), announced the charges.
“As alleged in the
indictment, Bogdanov and his co-conspirators combined sophisticated computer
hacking and identity theft with old-fashioned fraud to steal more than $1.5
million from the U.S. Treasury,” stated United States Attorney Donoghue. “This Office, together with our law
enforcement partners, will use all our available resources to target and bring
cybercriminals to justice, wherever they are.”
“In the digital age, many of us either fear having our
personal information stolen, or have had it stolen. This investigation revealed a major scheme to
defraud the federal government and victimize tax payers. Mr. Bogdanov allegedly thought he could
escape justice by hiding outside of our jurisdiction, but working together with
our international partners, the FBI has the ability to capture and extradite
criminals for their day in court,” stated FBI Assistant Director-in-Charge
Sweeney.
"IRS-CI special agents remain committed to working
closely with our law enforcement partners around the globe in bringing these
cybercriminals to justice," stated IRS-CI Acting Special Agent-in-Charge
Larsen.
Between June 2014 and November 2016, Bogdanov and his
co-conspirators misappropriated personally identifiable information (“PII”),
such as Social Security numbers and dates of birth of identity theft victims,
by gaining unauthorized access to the computer systems of private tax
preparation firms in the United States.
They then changed the information on the tax returns so that the refunds
were paid to prepaid debit cards that he and his co-conspirators
controlled. Bogdanov and his
co-conspirators also used misappropriated PII to obtain prior tax filings of
victims from an IRS website, and filed new tax returns, purportedly on behalf
of the victims, so that refunds were paid to prepaid debit cards under their
control. The debit cards were cashed
out in the United States, and a percentage of the proceeds was wired to
Bogdanov in Russia. Since discovering
this scheme, the IRS has added additional layers of security to its website.
If convicted of the charges, Bogdanov faces up to 27 years’
imprisonment.
The charges in the indictment are allegations, and the
defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
The government’s case is being handled by the Office’s
National Security and Cybercrime Section.
Assistant United States Attorneys Michael T. Keilty and Jonathan E.
Algor are in charge of the prosecution.
The Justice Department’s Office of International Affairs,
the FBI’s Legal Attaché abroad and foreign authorities provided critical
assistance in securing and coordinating Bogdanov’s arrest and extradition. The Office extends its appreciation to the
Royal Thai Police, particularly the Crime Suppression Division, and the FBI’s
Legal Attaché for their assistance in apprehending the defendant.
The Defendant:
ANTON BOGDANOV (also known as “Kusok”)
Age: 33
Russia
E.D.N.Y. Docket No. 19-CR-197 (MKB)
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