Crown Prosecution Service
Printable version |
IT fraudster imprisoned for selling £1 million of software to attack personal bank accounts to fraudsters
An IT fraudster was imprisoned on 14 June 2022 for profiting by more than £1m from selling software which allowed criminals to dupe people into divulging personal banking information.
Timmy Ijie, 25, pleaded guilty to two counts of supplying computer software for fraudulent purposes and one count of money laundering at Southwark Crown Court and was sentenced to four-and-a-half years' imprisonment.
The criminal investigation by City of London and Metropolitan Police revealed that Ijie used an online messaging app, Telegram, to offer specialist software for sale which enabled fraudsters to bypass banking security systems. Ijie offered the software through a monthly subscription, charging a fee of around £600 per month, payable in cryptocurrency.
Over a period of around eight months, Ijie made over £1.3 million worth of sales of the product to over 1000 criminals.
It is unclear how many fraudsters might have used the software or the scale of potential victims and losses.
Alistair Dickson of the CPS said: “Ijie boasted on social media how successful this software was, in enabling the commission of fraud. He bragged that, in one day alone, it had been used by criminals to defraud over 150 victims and posted positive reviews from criminals who had successfully used the software.
“Potentially thousands of victims may have had their bank accounts compromised and money stolen from them. Ijie’s guilty pleas and sentence will prevent this software circulating any further and will help keep bank accounts secure from fraudsters.
“We would like thank the Dedicated Card and Payment Crime Unit for their excellent investigative work.”
The CPS is committed to working alongside law enforcement and investigatory authorities to prosecute those enabling fraudsters intent on harming the public.
Notes to editors
- Alistair Dickson is a Specialist Prosecutor for the CPS Serious Economic Organised and International Directorate (SEOCID).
- SEOCID was launched on 1 April 2022 and is the CPS response to the changing nature of crime by bringing together specialists in organised and economic crime as the lines in this criminality is being blurred even more.
- Timmy Ijie (DOB: 13 January 1997) pleaded guilty to two counts of making or supplying materials for fraud and one count of money laundering and was sentenced to four and half years imprisonment.
Original article link: https://www.cps.gov.uk/cps/news/it-fraudster-imprisoned-selling-ps1-million-software-attack-personal-bank-accounts