Three individuals have been charged by the US authorities for orchestrating a series of SIM-swap attacks linked to the $400 million hack of FTX, one of the largest digital currency exchange platforms, in 2022. The exchange was hacked mere hours after it filed for bankruptcy.
The alleged SIM-swap robbers have been identified as Robert Powell (aka R, R$, EISwapo1), Carter Rohn (aka Carti, Panslayer), and Emily Hernandez (aka Em). The trio is accused of stealing the identities of 50 victims and convincing telecom providers to port the victims’ numbers to their phones.
According to the indictment, Hernandez purportedly impersonated an employee at the victim company on November 11 and 12, 2022. While the indictment refers to the target company as “Victim Company-1,” blockchain security firm Elliptic suggests that the victim was FTX, as its crypto wallets experienced multiple unauthorized transactions totaling approximately $400 million in the hours following its bankruptcy filing.
Powell allegedly gained access to the exchange employee’s AT&T account and, through it, to authentication codes needed to access the company’s online accounts. Then he facilitated the transfer of over $400 million in virtual currency out of the company's crypto wallets.
The indictment further detailed the methods employed by the defendants, including the creation of phony identification cards and visits to wireless service provider retail outlets across multiple states. These fake documents were utilized to convince stores to port data from victims' phones, enabling the defendants to circumvent two-factor authentication security measures and access victims' virtual currency accounts, social media passwords, emails, and other sensitive data.
Additionally, Powell targeted another victim identified only as “A.C.” A different co-conspirator impersonated A.C. at a Texas mobile store, resulting in the theft of nearly $600,000 in virtual currency following the SIM swap.
The scheme, which ran from March 2021 to April of the following year, involved the co-conspirators traveling to cellphone retail stores in more than 15 states. All three individuals were arrested last week.
Robert Powell, identified as the alleged ringleader of the SIM-swap group, was charged with conspiracy to commit wire fraud and aggravated identity theft. He was released on a $10,000 bond. The other two defendants, Carter Rohn and Emily Hernandez, are also facing charges of conspiracy to commit wire fraud and conspiracy to commit aggravated identity theft and access device fraud.
Last week, 22-year-old Daniel James Junk, has received a sentence of six years in prison for his involvement in a series of SIM-swap attacks aiming to steal his victims’ cryptocurrency exchange accounts. Junk was arrested in March 2022, with the FBI seizing $3 million worth of bitcoin. He later surrendered another $1 million worth of bitcoin. He pleaded guilty in April 2023, but in January 2024 it was discovered that he continued to engage in unlawful activities.