Former BETonSPORTS PLC employee pleads guilty
Technorati Tag: Security Breach
Date Reported:
9/18/08
Organization:
BETonSPORTS PLC
Contractor/Consultant/Branch:
None
Location:
Antigua and Barbuda
Victims:
Customers
Number Affected:
"at least 150"
Types of Data:
"names, dates of birth, addresses, mothers' maiden names, social security numbers, telephone numbers, credit card numbers, and three-digit credit-card security codes"
Breach Description:
"MICHAEL J. GARCIA, United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, announced that PATRICK KALONJI pleaded guilty earlier today to charges stemming from his role in a large Internet-based identity-theft ring. KALONJI, who was employed by the offshore Internet gambling website BetOnSports.com"*
*The pictured person is Gary Stephen Kaplan, the founder of BETonSPORTS PLC NOT Patrick Kalonji.
Reference URL:
U.S. Attorney's Office Press Release*
North Country Gazette
*"On June 23, Michael J. Garcia, United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, and Mark J. Mershon, Assistant Director-in-Charge of the New York Office of the Federal Bureau of Investigation ("FBI"), announced the arrest of Patrick Kalonji. " (Source: Gambling911.com)
Report Credit:
U.S. Attorney's Office
Response:
From the online sources cited above:
NEW YORK—An employee of the offshore Internet gambling website BetOnSports.com has pleaded guilty to charges stemming from his role in a large Internet-based identity theft ring.
[Evan] BETonSPORTS PLC is now defunct (July, 2006) and the Antigua Financial Services Regulatory Commission is assisting/supervising its settlements with creditors, customers and employees. There are reportedly "millions of dollars" owed. The ex-CEO David Carruthers was arrested in Dallas in July, 2006 and the founder, Gary Stephen Kaplan (pictured) was arrested in March, 2007. The BETonSPORTS organization has a very storied past. From 2001 through July, 2006 BETonSPORTS allegedly took in as much as $3.5 billion in wagers.
Prosecutors say Patrick Kalonji, 27, a native of the Republic of the Congo until his arrest, lived in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada and served as a source of information for an identity-theft ring engaged in stealing personal identity information from victims throughout the United States, using the information to commit various forms of identity theft.
[Evan] It seems like the company was rotten at the core. Mr. Kalonji's guilty plea should not catch people by surprise.
In the Republic of Costa Rica, he was employed in the credit department of the Internet-based gambling website BetOnSports.com.
Prosecutors say Kalonji and his coconspirators stole the private identity information of at least 150 victims from sources including the BetOnSports credit department.
The stolen information included the victims’ names, dates of birth, addresses, mothers’ maiden names, social security numbers, telephone numbers, credit card numbers, and three-digit credit-card security codes.
Victims of the scheme resided throughout the United States, including in New Jersey, Colorado, Texas, Florida, Arkansas, and California.
After stealing the victims’ identity information, Kalonji then e-mailed that information to other ring members who then used the stolen credit card numbers and identity information to commit various forms of fraud, including stealing money from the victims’ credit cards and bank accounts, making fraudulent purchases from various vendors over the Internet, and purchasing airline tickets for round-trip travel between Lagos, Nigeria, and New York City.
[Evan] I believe that this "identity theft ring" is large and sophisticated. Mr. Kalonji is likely viewed by the ring leaders to be expendable and will probably not cause much of a disruption in revenue flow.
KALONJI pleaded guilty this afternoon before United States Judge PAUL A. CROTTY and is scheduled to be sentenced on January 6, 2009, at 3 p.m.
[Evan] Mr. Kalonji pled guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit bank and wire fraud. He faces a maximum sentence of 30 years in prison.
MR. GARCIA praised the investigative work of the Federal Bureau of Investigation and thanked the Department of Homeland Security's U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement for its assistance in this case.
[Evan] Its good news to catch a bad guy and make him pay, but I presume that this is a very small victory in a very large war. Identity-theft is big business and business is good.
The prosecution is being handled by the Office's Major Crimes and Computer Hacking/Intellectual Property Unit.
Assistant United States Attorney MARCUS A. ASNER is in charge of the prosecution.
If you believe you were a victim of this crime, including a victim entitled to restitution, and you wish to provide information to law enforcement and/or receive notice of future developments in the case or additional information, please contact Wendy Olsen-Clancy, the Victim Witness Coordinator at the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York, at .
Commentary:
I'm sure that there are other legitimate online gambling sites that work very hard to portray themselves as legitimate and trustworthy businesses. Take the BETonSPORTS saga and the fact that gambling is viewed by many to be a sin, and you get a tough environment to foster the legitimacy. Gambling is risky enough as it is.
Past Breaches:
Unknown
Date Reported:9/18/08
Organization:
BETonSPORTS PLC
Contractor/Consultant/Branch:
None
Location:
Antigua and Barbuda
Victims:
Customers
Number Affected:
"at least 150"
Types of Data:
"names, dates of birth, addresses, mothers' maiden names, social security numbers, telephone numbers, credit card numbers, and three-digit credit-card security codes"
Breach Description:
"MICHAEL J. GARCIA, United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, announced that PATRICK KALONJI pleaded guilty earlier today to charges stemming from his role in a large Internet-based identity-theft ring. KALONJI, who was employed by the offshore Internet gambling website BetOnSports.com"*
*The pictured person is Gary Stephen Kaplan, the founder of BETonSPORTS PLC NOT Patrick Kalonji.
Reference URL:
U.S. Attorney's Office Press Release*
North Country Gazette
*"On June 23, Michael J. Garcia, United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, and Mark J. Mershon, Assistant Director-in-Charge of the New York Office of the Federal Bureau of Investigation ("FBI"), announced the arrest of Patrick Kalonji. " (Source: Gambling911.com)
Report Credit:
U.S. Attorney's Office
Response:
From the online sources cited above:
NEW YORK—An employee of the offshore Internet gambling website BetOnSports.com has pleaded guilty to charges stemming from his role in a large Internet-based identity theft ring.
[Evan] BETonSPORTS PLC is now defunct (July, 2006) and the Antigua Financial Services Regulatory Commission is assisting/supervising its settlements with creditors, customers and employees. There are reportedly "millions of dollars" owed. The ex-CEO David Carruthers was arrested in Dallas in July, 2006 and the founder, Gary Stephen Kaplan (pictured) was arrested in March, 2007. The BETonSPORTS organization has a very storied past. From 2001 through July, 2006 BETonSPORTS allegedly took in as much as $3.5 billion in wagers.
Prosecutors say Patrick Kalonji, 27, a native of the Republic of the Congo until his arrest, lived in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada and served as a source of information for an identity-theft ring engaged in stealing personal identity information from victims throughout the United States, using the information to commit various forms of identity theft.
[Evan] It seems like the company was rotten at the core. Mr. Kalonji's guilty plea should not catch people by surprise.
In the Republic of Costa Rica, he was employed in the credit department of the Internet-based gambling website BetOnSports.com.
Prosecutors say Kalonji and his coconspirators stole the private identity information of at least 150 victims from sources including the BetOnSports credit department.
The stolen information included the victims’ names, dates of birth, addresses, mothers’ maiden names, social security numbers, telephone numbers, credit card numbers, and three-digit credit-card security codes.
Victims of the scheme resided throughout the United States, including in New Jersey, Colorado, Texas, Florida, Arkansas, and California.
After stealing the victims’ identity information, Kalonji then e-mailed that information to other ring members who then used the stolen credit card numbers and identity information to commit various forms of fraud, including stealing money from the victims’ credit cards and bank accounts, making fraudulent purchases from various vendors over the Internet, and purchasing airline tickets for round-trip travel between Lagos, Nigeria, and New York City.
[Evan] I believe that this "identity theft ring" is large and sophisticated. Mr. Kalonji is likely viewed by the ring leaders to be expendable and will probably not cause much of a disruption in revenue flow.
KALONJI pleaded guilty this afternoon before United States Judge PAUL A. CROTTY and is scheduled to be sentenced on January 6, 2009, at 3 p.m.
[Evan] Mr. Kalonji pled guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit bank and wire fraud. He faces a maximum sentence of 30 years in prison.
MR. GARCIA praised the investigative work of the Federal Bureau of Investigation and thanked the Department of Homeland Security's U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement for its assistance in this case.
[Evan] Its good news to catch a bad guy and make him pay, but I presume that this is a very small victory in a very large war. Identity-theft is big business and business is good.
The prosecution is being handled by the Office's Major Crimes and Computer Hacking/Intellectual Property Unit.
Assistant United States Attorney MARCUS A. ASNER is in charge of the prosecution.
If you believe you were a victim of this crime, including a victim entitled to restitution, and you wish to provide information to law enforcement and/or receive notice of future developments in the case or additional information, please contact Wendy Olsen-Clancy, the Victim Witness Coordinator at the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York, at .
Commentary:
I'm sure that there are other legitimate online gambling sites that work very hard to portray themselves as legitimate and trustworthy businesses. Take the BETonSPORTS saga and the fact that gambling is viewed by many to be a sin, and you get a tough environment to foster the legitimacy. Gambling is risky enough as it is.
Past Breaches:
Unknown
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