U.S. Department of Justice Seizes Cybercrime Marketplace Popeyetools, Files Criminal Charges against Operators and Seizes Cryptocurrency

The U.S. Department of Justice announced that it has seized the cybercrime market Popeyetools and indicted its administrators Abdul Ghaffar, Abdul Sami and Javed Mirza. Nicole M. Argentieri, Chief of the Criminal Division and Chief Deputy Assistant Attorney General of the Department of Justice, said, "As alleged, the three founded and operated a long-standing online market that sold illegal goods and services for the commission of cybercrimes, including ransomware attacks and financial fraud. Today we are announcing the takedown of the PopeyeTools domain, criminal charges against its operators, and the seizure of cryptocurrency." If convicted, the defendants face up to 10 years in prison for each charge. The U.S. Department of Justice announced that it has seized the cybercrime market Popeyetools and indicted its administrators Abdul Ghaffar, Abdul Sami and Javed Mirza. Nicole M. Argentieri, Chief of the Criminal Division and Chief Deputy Assistant Attorney General of the Department of Justice. “As alleged in the charges, the three created and operated a long-running online marketplace for illegal goods and services used to commit cybercrime, including ransomware attacks and financial fraud,” Argentieri said. “Today we are announcing the takedown of the PopeyeTools domain, criminal charges against its operators, and the seizure of cryptocurrency.” If convicted, the defendants face up to 10 years in prison on each count.