Watch CBS News

Feds: 2 Belarus Men Got $1.35M Stolen In Phishing Scam

PITTSBURGH (AP) - Federal authorities in Pittsburgh say two men have been charged by authorities in Belarus with receiving $1.35 million stolen in a phishing scheme from the bank account of a Pennsylvania oil and gas drilling company.

U.S. Attorney David Hickton says 34-year-old Aleskey Yaroshevich and 41-year-old Egor Pavlenko are in police custody in their home town of Minsk.

Hickton's office last year charged Andrey Ghinkul, who's from Moldova, another eastern European country, with running a scheme to infect computers worldwide with Bugat malware.

The computer bug infected computers owned by Penneco Oil Co. Inc. in Delmont and enabled the conspirators to hack the company's bank accounts for $3.5 million.

Hickton says the Minsk men received a $1.35 million transfer made in September 2012.

It's not clear whether the Belarusian men have attorneys.

Join The Conversation On The KDKA Facebook Page
Stay Up To Date, Follow KDKA On Twitter

(Copyright 2016 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.)

View CBS News In
CBS News App Open
Chrome Safari Continue
Be the first to know
Get browser notifications for breaking news, live events, and exclusive reporting.