JAKARTA – An Israeli private detective who has been detained in New York, United States (US) since 2019 on charges of being involved in a hacker recruitment scheme, wants a plea deal, according to a letter filed in court by his attorney.
Federal prosecutors said jailed detective Aviram Azari organized a series of hacking missions through an unnamed third party against New York-based American companies, using fake websites and phishing messages to steal email account passwords.
While the indictment did not identify the hacker by name, five people familiar with the case said Azari was charged with being linked to New Delhi, India-based BellTroX InfoTech Services which Reuters reported last year was behind a hacking campaign targeting lawyers, government officials, businessmen, investors and activists around the world.
Quoting Reuters Thursday July 1, Azari was charged with conspiracy to commit hacking, wire fraud and identity theft, court documents show.
Azari’s attorney, Barry Zone, wrote to US District Judge John Koeltl of Manhattan on June 11 that his client was now in a position to engage in meaningful defense discussions and negotiations with the government.
The letter requests an adjournment of the case hearing scheduled for August 9, in order to engage in what Azari’s party hopes will be fruitful plea discussions.”
Zone declined to comment further. The US Attorney’s Office in Manhattan declined to comment. Meanwhile, Emails and phone calls to BellTroX chief executive Sumit Gupta and other employees have gone unanswered since last year.
Previously reported, BellTroX was contracted by Western private detectives who worked on the orders of law firms and wealthy people, citing former agents.
BellTroX is one of several India-based companies providing hacking services to global clients, the operators said.
For your information, US Government investigations are looking into whether their citizens hired contractors, including BellTroX, to spy on US environmental activists, according to three people briefed on the investigation who spoke on condition of anonymity.
Source: Voi News