ATM withdrawals to someone who had hacked four iWire Prepaid Card accounts.
Surveillance video from a Washington Mutual bank branch in Brooklyn, N.Y., where some of the unauthorized withdrawals were made, showed a Caucasian man in a dark baseball cap emblazoned with the words “Top Gun” and a star and wings symbol, as well as a tan-colored sweatshirt or jacket with a dark front panel and dark trim at the zipper and collar, according to the affidavit of FBI special agent Albert Murray.
“A Google search for the UIN found that this ICQ UIN was identified with a ham radio operator who uses a specific radio call sign,” Murray’s affidavit says. “A Google search for this call sign led to Web sites for ham radio enthusiasts, such as www.hamgallery.com and www.grz.co.il.”
At those sites, investigators found photographs showing “Yuri” wearing “the same tan-colored jacket or sweatshirt as the individual in the Washington Mutual and Citibank ATM videos,” Murray’s affidavit says.
A Google search also led to a link to a Federal Communications Commission enforcement letter sent to the amateur radio operator using the radio call sign associated with “Yuri.” The letter, which detailed various ham radio rules violations, was addressed to “Yuriy Ryabinin” in Brooklyn.
On Friday, a Brooklyn grand jury returned a three-count indictment against Yuriy Ryabinin, Olena Rakushchynets, and Ivan Biltse for conspiracy to commit access device fraud, access device fraud, and obstruction of justice.
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