Prosecutors Move to Unseal Major Cybercrime Case Against Ivanov and Shakhmametov
On Wednesday, September 25, 2024, prosecutors asked the US District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia to unseal a case involving two individuals charged with significant cybercrime activities. The motion, submitted by the United States Attorney’s Office, sought to make public details related to the ongoing investigation of Sergey Sergeevich Ivanov and Timur Kamilevich Shakhmametov.
The case was initially sealed to prevent alerting the defendants and their associates about the investigation. However, prosecutors indicated that they now aim to publicize the case to disrupt ongoing criminal activities and gather additional information from the community.
Sergey Ivanov has been identified as a long-standing figure in the realm of professional cyber money laundering, reportedly active for over two decades. He allegedly advertised his laundering services on various Russian-speaking criminal forums, such as DirectConnection and Mazafaka. Prosecutors claim that Ivanov’s services have facilitated major cybercrime marketplaces and hackers involved in extensive data breaches targeting critical U.S. financial systems.
Ivanov faces charges related to the creation and operation of Russian payment and exchange services known as UAPS, PinPays, and PM2BTC. These platforms purportedly provided money transfer and laundering services specifically for criminals. According to cryptocurrency blockchain analysis, between July 12, 2013, and August 10, 2024, these services were implicated in transactions amounting to approximately $1.15 billion. Notably, around 32% of all traced bitcoin sent to Ivanov’s addresses was linked to other addresses associated with criminal activities. Investigators highlighted that over $158 million was allegedly derived from fraud, more than $8.8 million from ransomware payments, and approximately $4.7 million from darknet drug sales.
In addition to Ivanov, Timur Shakhmametov is charged in connection with his involvement in the notorious carding website, Joker’s Stash. This platform reportedly sold data from around 40 million payment cards each year, accumulating hundreds of millions of payment card records overall. The site is recognized as one of the largest carding markets in history, with profit estimates ranging from $280 million to over $1 billion. Shakhmametov, along with others, allegedly promoted Joker’s Stash through various online cybercrime forums.
Shortly before the planned unsealing of the case, the United States Secret Service executed a seizure warrant targeting domains associated with Ivanov’s laundering services, UAPS, and PM2BTC.
Prosecutors have formally requested that the court unseal case no. 1:24-cr-205, including the motion to unseal and the accompanying order.
Please contact BlockTribune for access to a copy of this filing.
