US DOJ announces arrest, indictments in North Korean IT worker scheme, World News
The North Korean workers used compromised identities of more than 80 US citizens to obtain remote jobs at more than 100 US companies and caused more than US$3 million (S$3.8 million) in legal fees, remediation and other costs, according to the DOJ.
The North Koreans also allegedly stole at least US$900,000 worth of cryptocurrency from one Georgia-based company with their access, along with employer data and source code, including International Traffic in Arms Regulations (ITAR) data, from a California-based defence contractor, the DOJ said.
Monday's announcement included one arrest, two indictments, searches of more than two dozen US locations hosting multiple laptops used by remote North Korean workers, and the seizure of financial accounts and websites used by the participants as part of the alleged scheme, according to a DOJ statement.
The Permanent Mission of North Korea to the United Nations did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Zhenxing "Danny" Wang and Kejia Wang, both US citizens, were indicted as part of the operation, according to the DOJ. Zhenxing Wang was arrested in New Jersey, while Kejia Wang remains free, a DOJ spokesperson said in an email. An attorney for Zhenxing Wang could not be immediately located.
The two men, along with four other unnamed US "facilitators," assisted the North Koreans by procuring and operating laptops used by the overseas workers, created financial accounts to receive money earned by the workers to be sent back to North Korea, and created shell companies to make the workers appear more authentic, according to the DOJ, earning nearly US$700,000 from the scheme for themselves.
Federal prosecutors also indicted four Chinese nationals and two Taiwanese nationals for alleged roles in the operation.
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