Three people have been indicted in New York on charges of wire fraud and aggravated identity theft after allegedly using artificial intelligence to impersonate corporate executives and attorneys and steal about $129 million from companies worldwide, prosecutors announced Thursday.
The indictment, filed in a U.S. District Court in New York, names Jacob Soall, 41, Sharon Hazan, 54, and Guy Sheetrit, 42. Over more than a year and a half, the defendants are accused of targeting thousands of companies across the world in the AI scheme, according to court documents. Their victims included hospital systems in Missouri and California, a bank in Rhode Island, a financial technology company in the United Kingdom, a mutual fund company in Massachusetts and a pet food company in Florida.
The three defendants are from Spain, the U.K., Israel and the United Arab Emirates. They were also charged with money laundering, according to the indictment. Soall, Hazan and Sheetrit, who have nicknames that include "Rocky Balboa," "Superman Cash" and "Fat Boy," often targeted companies' accounting departments. They would send an email purporting to be from the CEO and ask for help with a confidential financial transaction, according to court documents. They would also coordinate a phone or video call where the defendants used AI to mimic the voice and sometimes the image of the CEO, according to the indictment. The defendants would then tell the employee to contact an attorney at a major law firm, who the group was also ready to impersonate, according to court documents.
Soall mainly impersonated attorneys from the U.K. and had a "handwritten script titled 'Lawyer Call' that he utilized to make himself seem like a real attorney when speaking with and defrauding victims," according to the U.S. Attorney's Office. The impersonated attorney would tell the employee to wire large payments to bank accounts across the world, according to court documents. The funds were then converted into cryptocurrency to try to conceal where they came from and then distributed to the trio and others involved, according to court documents.
The three were arrested between June and September, Soall and Hazan in Spain and Sheetrit in the U.K. Extradition requests for all three are pending. In 2008, Hazan was convicted in a New York court of conspiracy to commit bank fraud, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office. Lawyers for Soall and Sheetrit didn't immediately respond to an email requesting comment. It wasn't clear whether Hazan had an attorney.
FBI Assistant Director in Charge James C. Barnacle Jr. said the case shows how advanced technology can be used to commit large-scale fraud. "As criminals continue to weaponize emerging technologies, the FBI remains committed to rapidly adapting our capabilities to identify, investigate and disrupt those who seek to harm New Yorkers and businesses operating in our communities," he said in a statement. If convicted, the defendants face a maximum sentence of 20 years, except for aggravated identity theft, which has a maximum sentence of two years, according to the attorney's office.
Analysis
Why This Matters
- The case demonstrates how AI voice and video cloning tools are being used to perpetrate high-value corporate fraud, raising the stakes for security protocols in finance departments worldwide.
- The indictment highlights a cross-border criminal operation that exploited remote work and digital payment systems, underscoring gaps in international enforcement.
- The conversion of stolen funds into cryptocurrency illustrates how mixers and blockchain anonymity can be used to launder proceeds from AI-enabled crime.
Background
Voice and image cloning technology has advanced rapidly in recent years, with affordable AI tools capable of mimicking a person's speech patterns, tone and facial movements from a short audio or video sample. Law enforcement agencies have warned that such tools are increasingly used in social-engineering attacks, often targeting companies that process large wire transfers. The FBI has previously issued alerts about so-called deepfake fraud, in which criminals impersonate executives to authorize payments.
Key Perspectives
- FBI Assistant Director in Charge James C. Barnacle Jr.: said the case shows how advanced technology can be used to commit large-scale fraud, and the FBI is adapting to disrupt those who use emerging technologies to harm businesses and communities.
What to Watch
- Whether extradition proceedings for the three defendants in Spain and the U.K. proceed, and how long they take.
- Any additional victims or co-conspirators that may be identified as the investigation continues.
- Potential new corporate security measures, such as requiring multi-person approval for large wire transfers or using separate communication channels to verify executive requests.
Checked
12 claims in this story checked against 1 source: 12 supported.
Show each claim
- SupportedThree people were indicted in an alleged AI voice-cloning scheme involving about $129 million.Moneywatch - CBSNews.com: “Three people accused of using artificial intelligence to impersonate corporate executives and attorneys to steal about $129 million have been indicted”
- SupportedProsecutors say the trio impersonated CEOs and lawyers to trick companies’ finance departments.Moneywatch - CBSNews.com: “The trio, who have nicknames that include "Rocky Balboa," "Superman Cash" and "Fat Boy," often targeted the companies' accounting departments. They would send an email purporting to be from the CEO and ask for help with a confidential financial transaction”
- SupportedThe three were indicted on charges of wire fraud and aggravated identity theft.Moneywatch - CBSNews.com: “have been indicted on charges of wire fraud and aggravated identity theft”
- SupportedThe indictment names Jacob Soall, 41, Sharon Hazan, 54, and Guy Sheetrit, 42.Moneywatch - CBSNews.com: “Jacob Soall, 41, Sharon Hazan, 54, and Guy Sheetrit, 42”
- SupportedThe alleged scheme lasted more than a year and a half.Moneywatch - CBSNews.com: “Over more than a year and a half”
- SupportedThe defendants targeted thousands of companies worldwide.Moneywatch - CBSNews.com: “targeted thousands of companies across the world in their AI scheme”
- SupportedThe defendants used AI to mimic CEOs’ voices and sometimes their images during phone or video calls.Moneywatch - CBSNews.com: “They would also coordinate a phone or video call where the defendants used AI to mimic the voice and sometimes the image of the CEO”
- SupportedSoall had a handwritten script titled “Lawyer Call” that he used to seem like a real attorney when speaking with victims.Moneywatch - CBSNews.com: “a "handwritten script titled 'Lawyer Call' that he utilized to make himself seem like a real attorney when speaking with and defrauding victims,"”
- SupportedThe three were arrested between June and September.Moneywatch - CBSNews.com: “The three were arrested between June and September”
- SupportedExtradition requests for all three are pending.Moneywatch - CBSNews.com: “Extradition requests for all three are pending.”
- SupportedFBI Assistant Director in Charge James C. Barnacle Jr. said the case showed how advanced technology can be used to commit large-scale fraud.Moneywatch - CBSNews.com: “FBI Assistant Director in Charge James C. Barnacle Jr. said the case shows how advanced technology can be used to commit large-scale fraud.”
- SupportedBarnacle said: “As criminals continue to weaponize emerging technologies, the FBI remains committed to rapidly adapting our capabilities to identify, investigate and disrupt those who seek to harm New Yorkers and businesses operating in our communities.”Moneywatch - CBSNews.com: “"As criminals continue to weaponize emerging technologies, the FBI remains committed to rapidly adapting our capabilities to identify, investigate and disrupt those who seek to harm New Yorkers and businesses operating in our communities,"”
