DOJ arrests two, seizes 187 devices in North Korean laptop farm crackdown in Texas
The operation affected more than 70 U.S. companies and generated about $3 million, prosecutors said.
- On Tuesday, the DOJ announced the arrests of Michael James Bostelle of Pennsylvania and Juan Ceclilio Pena Carrillo of Texas for facilitating a scheme helping North Korean IT workers steal identities and obtain fraudulent employment at U.S. companies.
- The North Korea-directed operation relies on U.S.-based "laptop farms" where facilitators host company-issued devices, allowing overseas workers to log in remotely and appear as if operating from within the United States.
- During "Operation Lone Star Roundup," federal agents raided more than 40 Texas locations between Sept. 21 and Sept. 25, seizing more than 185 devices; the fraud impacted more than 70 U.S. companies and generated at least $3 million.
- Prosecutors charged Bostelle and Pena with wire fraud, while also indicting 10 China-based operators; alleged recruiter Tey Michael Nolte was named in the indictment but not charged.
- The investigation remains ongoing as authorities track the scheme, which funnels 85% to 90% of worker earnings to North Korea to support the regime's nuclear weapons and ballistic missile programs.
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US announces sweeping crackdown on North Koreans working for American IT firms
The U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) announced a sweeping law enforcement crackdown against North Korea’s remote information technology (IT) worker schemes on Tuesday, charging over a dozen people with helping the workers obtain fraudulent employment at American companies. The crackdown resulted in charges against 14 people, two arrests and the seizure of 187 computer devices, […]
It has been revealed that the North Korean regime systematically operated an illegal remote employment network on the U.S. mainland to fund the development of nuclear weapons and ballistic missiles. U.S. law enforcement authorities have uncovered dozens of bases in the U.S. that facilitated North Korean IT personnel from stealing U.S. citizen identities to obtain disguised employment at U.S. companies. After securing employment using these stole…
The U.S. dismantles a network that facilitated remote jobs for North Korean IT, generating millions for the Asian regime.The operation included arrests and seizure of devices used in labor fraud, affecting more than seventy firms.
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