Ex Canadian government worker pleads guilty to U.S. ransomware charges & More News Here

A former Canadian federal public servant from Gatineau, Que., who pleaded guilty in Canada after a ransomware investigation that netted tens of hundreds of thousands of {dollars}’ value of seized bitcoin has now pleaded guilty to comparable charges within the United States.

Sébastien Vachon-Desjardins was arrested by RCMP in January final yr on allegations he was a key determine in a global ransomware ring often called NetWalker.

NetWalker is alleged to have focused companies and different establishments by encrypting information on their programs, after which holding that information for ransom. It’s additionally alleged it accessed and stole delicate private details about workers, purchasers and customers.

After the RCMP arrest, Vachon-Desjardins was charged with mischief in relation to laptop information, unauthorized use of a pc, extortion and taking part in a felony group.

In January this yr, he pleaded guilty through video in a Brampton, Ont., courtroom to all however the unauthorized use of a pc cost, and was sentenced to seven years in jail.

The RCMP and Department of Justice stated in March that Vachon-Desjardins confronted comparable charges in Florida and he was extradited that month.

In Florida court docket paperwork dated May 23, Vachon-Desjardins pleaded guilty to 4 charges. The government recommends he get a lesser penalty when he’s sentenced.

Vachon-Desjardins agreed to forfeit about $21.5 million US remaining from proceeds of those crimes, together with 27.65 bitcoins, and co-operate with different investigations.

As a part of the settlement, he agrees he “was one of the most prolific NetWalker Ransomware affiliates.”

FBI contacted RCMP in 2020

The RCMP’s investigation into Vachon-Desjardins started in August 2020 when the FBI requested for assist to establish a Canadian suspect in its NetWalker investigation.

Those Florida court docket paperwork present Vachon-Desjardins infiltrated an unnamed firm in Tampa on April 30, 2020.

That firm, referred to as Victim 1 within the paperwork, spent about $1.2 million US to get again to regular as an alternative of paying the $300,000 US demanded in a notice Vachon-Desjardins despatched.

Evidence the FBI gave to the RCMP allowed it to begin its personal probe into whether or not crimes had been dedicated in Canada. 

RCMP and Gatineau police searched the Gatineau dwelling of Vachon-Desjardins in January 2021 and seized computing and storage gadgets, 719 bitcoins (value tens of hundreds of thousands of {dollars}) and $790,000 Cdn.

The cryptocurrency seizure was believed to be the most important in Canada to date when it comes to financial worth, the RCMP stated then.

Public Services and Procurement Canada wrote in an e-mail this previous March that Vachon-Desjardins hadn’t been employed on the division since Jan. 13, however declined to reply different questions on his employment historical past.

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