Three men charged for using AI to steal $129 million from global firms

The global fraud scheme

The United States Department of Justice recently unsealed an indictment against three foreign nationals for a massive international fraud. The men, identified as Jacob Soall, Sharon Hazan, and Guy Sheetrit, were charged with conspiracy to commit wire fraud, money-laundering conspiracy, and aggravated identity theft. According to the indictment, the group orchestrated a scheme that successfully stole more than $129 million from various companies around the world.

The investigation revealed that the fraud took place between 2024 and 2026. The group targeted various industries, including healthcare, banking, and technology. They were able to extract significant sums from a Missouri hospital system, a Rhode Island bank, a California hospital system, a Massachusetts mutual fund, a Florida pet food company, and a UK tech company.

Law enforcement officials captured the suspects in different countries to dismantle the operation. Authorities apprehended Soall and Hazan in Spain during the warmer months, while Sheetrit was taken into custody in the United Kingdom during September. The scale of the operation shows how organized the group was in targeting high-value corporate entities across multiple continents.

How AI was used to deceive

The core of the criminal operation relied on the use of artificial intelligence to create convincing impersonations. The men used AI technology to alter and mimic the specific voices and images of corporate executives and attorneys. By creating these high-fidelity replicas, they were able to deceive employees into believing they were communicating with authorized leadership figures.

The scam typically began with the men acting as a corporate executive to contact an employee. They would claim that the employee's assistance was needed for a sensitive financial transaction. Once the employee was engaged, the scammers would instruct them to reach out to legal counsel at a major global law firm to facilitate the move.

To complete the deception, the men would then impersonate a lawyer from those specific firms. This multi-layered approach allowed them to convince employees to wire large amounts of money to specific accounts. By mimicking both the high-level executive and the legal counsel, they bypassed the standard checks and balances that usually protect corporate funds.

Tracing the stolen money

Once the employees were convinced to move the funds, the money was directed to bank accounts in a wide array of countries. The DOJ reported that the stolen proceeds were sent to accounts in the United States, Spain, Portugal, Greece, the United Arab Emirates, Singapore, Austria, Slovakia, and China. This international distribution was a key part of their strategy to move the money quickly out of reach.

After the funds were successfully wired to these various locations, the men took a final step to obscure the trail. They converted the stolen money into cryptocurrency to hide the source, ownership, and control of the proceeds. This move was intended to make it significantly harder for authorities to track the money as it was distributed among the men and their co-conspirators.

The sheer volume of the theft is reflected in the specific amounts taken from different organizations. For example, they took nearly $5 million from a Missouri hospital system and about $2.7 million from a Rhode Island bank. They also secured over $11 million from a UK-based technology company, demonstrating their ability to target diverse and wealthy organizations.

The human element of the scam

The suspects used several aliases to conduct their business and evade detection. Jacob Soall operated under the nicknames "Seba Clarke" and "Rocky Balboa," while Sharon Hazan used names such as "Superman Cash," "Fat Boy," and "Ron." These personas helped them navigate different interactions without being tied to their true identities or previous criminal activities.

The FBI has expressed concern over how quickly criminals can weaponize new technologies to harm businesses. James C Barnacle Jr, the FBI assistant director in charge, stated that the scheme demonstrates how advanced technology can be exploited to commit large-scale fraud. He emphasized that the bureau is committed to adapting its capabilities to identify and disrupt those who use these tools for criminal goals.

Legal experts also noted the duality of the technology involved in this case. US attorney Jamie McDonald mentioned that while artificial intelligence has great potential, the public must recognize that some people will use it for criminal purposes. This case serves as a primary example of how the benefits of AI are being balanced against its use as a tool for sophisticated, high-stakes crime.