The largest identity theft ring in US history has been broken up a little over a month after Patrick Kalonji was arrested for stealing over 150 identities from online gambling websites.
Tuesday's bust was the biggest in US history.
"So far as we know, this is the single largest and most complex identity theft case ever charged in this country," Attorney General Michael B. Mukasey told reporters on Tuesday. The Department of Justice (DOJ) coordinated efforts by U.S. authorities and other countries including Turkey and Germany. "Earlier today, a grand jury here in the District of Massachusetts returned an indictment charging a defendant with participating in a massive identity theft case... Together, we have charged a total of 11 people, including residents of at least five different countries, with various crimes relating to the theft and resale of credit and debit card account information."
Those charged in this case allegedly hacked into computers and stole more than 40 million debit and credit card numbers from various stores / retailers including TJX Corporation, whose stores include Marshalls and TJ Maxx; BJ's Wholesale Club; Barnes and Noble; Sports Authority; Boston Market; Office Max; Dave and Busters restaurants; DSW shoe stores; and Forever 21.
"(They used) sophisticated computer hacking techniques, breaching security systems and installing programs that gathered enormous quantities of personal financial data", Mukasey added.
On June 23, Michael J. Garcia, United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, and Mark J. Mershon, Assistant Director-in-Charge of the New York Office of the Federal Bureau of Investigation ("FBI"), announced the arrest of Patrick Kalonji.
Kalonji, who was employed by the now defunct online gambling firm BetonSports, allegedly served as a source of stolen information for an identity-theft ring which was engaged in (among other things) stealing individual victims' personal identity information, sharing that information over the Internet with other members of the ring, and using the information to commit various forms of fraud.
As part of the scheme, Kalonji and his co conspirators stole the private identify information of at least 150 victims from the BetOnSports credit department and other sources. The stolen information included, in various cases, the victims' names, dates of birth, addresses, mothers' maiden names, social security numbers, telephone numbers, credit card numbers, and three-digit credit-card security codes. Co-conspirators then used the stolen credit card numbers and identity information to commit various forms of fraud, including using the credit card numbers to make purchases over the Internet.
Kalonji was arrested in Philadelphia en route from Toronto. The Congo native most recently resided in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada.
The Kalonji case was another slap on the face to customers of BetonSports. In July 2006, that company was forced to shut down. Millions of dollars are still owed to customers, suppliers and employees.
As for Tuesday's bust, charges will include conspiracy, computer intrusion, fraud and identity theft. Three of the defendants are U.S. citizens, one is from Estonia, three are from Ukraine, two are from the People's Republic of China and one is from Belarus. One individual is only known by an alias online, and his place of origin is unknown.
This case also involved the work of investigators all over the world, including the United States. Agencies in the U.S. include the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) and the U.S. Secret Service.
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Christopher Costigan, Gambling911.com Publisher
