Transnational Organized Crime Rewards Program Offer for Information to Bring Ukrainian Nationals to Justice
Michael R. Pompeo, Secretary of State
Today, the U.S. Department of State announces rewards of up to $1 million each for information leading to the arrests and/or convictions of Ukrainian nationals Artem Viacheslavovich Radchenko and Oleksandr Vitalyevich Ieremenko for participating in transnational organized crime, specifically cybercrime.
Cyber criminals do not observe nor respect the rule of law in any country. As their criminal reach is worldwide, we welcome the cooperation and coordination of all governments to bring these criminals to justice and protect innocent citizens throughout the world. The United States is committed to that effort in part through the State Department’s Transnational Organized Crime Rewards Program (TOCRP) to help our law enforcement partners bring cyber and other transnational criminals to justice.
In January 2020, a U.S. Secret Service led investigation resulted in a 16-count indictment against Radchenko and Ieremenko, charging them with securities fraud conspiracy, wire fraud conspiracy, computer fraud conspiracy, wire fraud, and computer fraud. The indictment alleges Radchenko and Ieremenko hacked the Security and Exchange Commission’s (SEC) Electronic Data Gathering, Analysis, and Retrieval (EDGAR) system and stole thousands of confidential files, which were then illegally sold for profit. The SEC has also filed a civil complaint charging Ieremenko and other individuals and entities.
This reward offer is made under the TOCRP, which together with the Narcotics Rewards Program, has brought more than 75 transnational criminals to justice since these programs began in 1986. The Department of State has paid more than $130 million in rewards for information leading to those apprehensions.
The Bureau of International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs manages these rewards programs in close coordination with the U.S. Secret Service (USSS), Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement/Homeland Security Investigations (ICE/HSI), and other U.S. agencies.
These actions demonstrate the State Department’s commitment to support law enforcement efforts and a whole of government approach to combating transnational organized crime.