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A federal court sentenced a Estonian cybercriminal named Maksim Berezan to serve 66 months or 5.5 years in prison for his involvement in multiple ransomware attacks that caused approximately $53 million in losses.

Additionally, the court ordered the Estonian cybercriminal to pay more than $36 million in restitution.

Details of the criminal case against the Estonian cybercriminal

In June 2020, the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) filed an indictment against Berezan, who was an active member of DirectConnection, a Russian forum website wherein cybercriminals meet and assist each other in planning and executing cybercrimes such as ransomware attacks.

The DOJ alleged that Berezan worked closely with Russian-speaking cybercriminals to expand their criminal goals including obtaining and exploiting stolen financial account information.

In November 2020, the Latvian police arrested Berezan based on information from U.S. authorities. The police found and seized over $200,000 in currency, $1.7 million in bitcoin, vehicles including a Porsche Carrera 911, a black Porsche Cayenne, a Ducati motorcycle, and jewelries from the Estonian cyber criminal during a search at his residence.

The Latvian government extradited Berezan to the United States in december 2020. Investigators found evidences that he was inviolved in at least 13 ransomware attacks. Seven of those ransomware attacks were against victims in the United States that led to around $11 million in ransom payments deposited his cryptocurrency wallets.

According to the DOJ, in April 2021,  Berezan pleaded guilty to onspiracy to commit wire fraud affecting a financial institution and conspiracy to commit access device fraud and computer intrusions.

The DOJ has sophisticated methods to combat cybercrimes

In a statement, DOJ Criminal Division Assistant Attorney General Kenneth Polite Jr. noted, “Many of the world’s ransomware players began as fraudsters engaged in other types of online crimes, and this case demonstrates that their crimes will catch up to them."

He added that the case against Berezan is a "prime example" of how the DOJ "can leverage its traditional tools– criminal investigations and prosecutions – to combat ransomware."

On the other hand, U.S. Attorney Jessica D. Aber for the Eastern District of Virginia said, “Cybercrime has become increasingly more sophisticated, but so have our methods for combatting it."

"Ransomware attacks are devastating to people and organizations alike, and we have honed our strategies and techniques to target both the individual actors who perpetrate these attacks and the networks that support them. This case is just one example of how EDVA and the Justice Department are tackling this threat," she added.