Two Venezuelans Get 78 Months in $1.5 Million ATM Malware Case Tied to Tren de Aragua
Updated
Updated · MyNorthwest · Jun 29
Two Venezuelans Get 78 Months in $1.5 Million ATM Malware Case Tied to Tren de Aragua
3 articles · Updated · MyNorthwest · Jun 29
Summary
Two Venezuelan men were sentenced to 78 months in federal prison for a nationwide ATM “jackpotting” conspiracy that used malware to steal millions of dollars, with both also ordered to pay more than $1.5 million in restitution.
Prosecutors said Carlos Javier Padron, 36, and Oddry Arnoldo Cabrera Torrealba, 37, installed a Ploutus malware variant on ATMs, triggering machines to spit out cash while erasing evidence to evade bank detection.
Lincoln, Nebraska, police arrested the pair during an October 2024 jackpotting attempt, and both later pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit bank burglary, computer fraud and intentional damage to a protected computer.
Washington state and Eastern Oregon were among the areas hit, with Walla Walla, Milton-Freewater, the Seattle FBI office and the U.S. attorney’s office in Western Washington assisting the broader investigation.
The Justice Department said the scheme funded Tren de Aragua and remains active as investigators have already indicted 96 more defendants in a crackdown aimed at the gang’s financial pipeline.
With its leader killed in a drone strike, can the Tren de Aragua's vast ATM hacking empire survive?
How did years of U.S.-Venezuela hostility transform into cooperation for a targeted drone strike on a gang leader?
Tren de Aragua’s $1.5 Million ATM Jackpotting Spree: How a Venezuelan Gang’s Cybercrime Finances Terror and Trafficking in the U.S.
Overview
U.S. authorities are intensifying their crackdown on the transnational criminal organization Tren de Aragua by targeting its financial infrastructure. ATM jackpotting, the gang’s main source of revenue, is central to funding a range of serious crimes, including human trafficking, armed robbery, murder, and drug distribution. Law enforcement is using prosecutions to disrupt these financial operations, aiming to choke off the group’s funding pipeline. By dismantling this pipeline, authorities hope to weaken Tren de Aragua’s ability to sustain its extensive criminal enterprise, making it harder for the organization to operate and expand its activities.