back to article Cardslurping kingpin caged for 18 years over Carderplanet forum

A Ukrainian national who co-founded the infamous cybercrime marketplace CarderPlanet has been jailed for 18 years following a lengthy US legal process that ran for more than a decade. Roman Vega, 49, eventually pleaded guilty in 2009 to conspiracy to commit money laundering and access device fraud offences – but he was only …

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  1. Miek
    Linux

    "The US Secret Service, assisted by the US Postal Service, led the investigation into CarderPlanet. ®" -- Isn't this type of thing normally within the domain of the FBI rather than the Secret Service?

    1. Anonymous Coward
      Anonymous Coward

      As I understand it the FBI only investigate crimes within the country, these happened within and outside the USA.

    2. Anonymous Coward
      Anonymous Coward

      The secret service looks after the stability of the US currency. Organised major banking fraud falls under that remit.

      1. Turtle

        Stability of the US currency

        "The secret service looks after the stability of the US currency. Organised major banking fraud falls under that remit."

        But in the field of currency protection they are probably best known for their responsibility for investigating counterfeiting.

        1. Alan Brown Silver badge

          Re: Stability of the US currency

          and the USPS investigates mail/wire fraud.

          It makes sense.

    3. Tom 13

      Re: domain of the FBI rather than the Secret Service

      While the Secret Service has become best known for protecting the President, it's original purpose dealt with ensuring the money supply. As such, they would have been the lead agency on a multi-agency task force. Not usually my choice for references, but Wiki confirms my fuzzy recollection:

      With a reported one third of the currency in circulation being counterfeit at the time,[14] the Secret Service was created by President Abraham Lincoln on April 14, 1865, the day of his assassination

    4. Marshalltown

      Nope

      The Postal Service is in charge of mail fraud across state lines and over the internet as well as via envelope. From the USPIS site: "U.S. Postal Inspectors investigate any crime in which the U.S. Mail is used to further a scheme--whether it originated in the mail, by telephone, or on the Internet. The use of the U.S. Mail is what makes it mail fraud. " Presumably that means the USPS considers the internet part of the US Mail.

      The Secret Service was part of the Treasury Department until 2002 when the drooling idiots we had in congress instigated the DHS. The SS then was transferred to the DHS.

      Given the start date of the investigation the USPIS and the SS would have been the lead agencies.

  2. Richard Taylor 2

    Someone

    Despite my groans at many parts of the US justice system, it is good to see someone brought to book over this (if he really did it - no plea bargain of course). One (of many) questions is that other than this wild west of justice is how do we bring people to court without US action (and dare I say it bullying)

  3. Tom 13

    My only complaint about this decision is

    it was way to lenient. To me a suitable punishment, with you Brits providing concurrence for us to do so, would have been to hang him until he was dead at The Tower and leave the body there until the crows had picked it clean.

    1. Phil O'Sophical Silver badge

      Re: My only complaint about this decision is

      We Brits used to do a good line in drawing and quartering as well, but these days we can't even sentence someone to hard labour. Make him break rocks at minimum wage level until he's earned enough to pay it all back.

      1. Tom 13

        Re: We Brits used to do a good line

        Just to clarify, I wasn't meaning to ask that you'd perform the actual hanging. I'm quite willing for us to do that. It's just that The Tower has a certain historical gravitas that nothing here in The States quite matches. The point being to focus the minds of others on where they don't want to wind up. And I'd be quite willing to grant exclusive coverage rights to the Beeb with the caveat that they aren't allowed to provide commentary on the proceedings, only record them to the world to see.

        I'd accept your counter-proposal in the current environment but still think The Tower is the better option for the reasons stated above.

  4. HereWeGoAgain

    Who appointed America as the world's policeman, judge and jury?

    If these crimes are international, why is it always America that makes the arrest, the trial and the inevitable (for foreigners in America) the conviction and the sentence?

    1. Neil B

      Re: Who appointed America as the world's policeman, judge and jury?

      And pays for the investigation, trial, and incarceration on all of our behalf.

    2. Hoe

      Re: Who appointed America as the world's policeman, judge and jury?

      Because everyone's Prison's are over crowded and in the EU Human Right's law's are giving governments a problem.

      In the US they don't acknowledge it and though California has just been made my a court of law to reduce their prison polulation by 25% every other state can keep cramming them in.

      *Plus then can afford it.

    3. Marshalltown

      Re: Who appointed America as the world's policeman, judge and jury?

      There are a couple very different ways of addressing this. The simplest is that at the time, the vast majority of wealth being created was in the US. Europe was a close second. So, quite simply, the largest number of crime victims an targets was in the US and Europe. In that sense, it has nothing to do with being appointed "the world's policeman..." and everything to do with protecting US citizens. Since Vega was targeting European as well as North American interests, there was some very enthusiastic international cooperation to collect the guy, possibly not excluding elements in Russian and Ukraine, where the help may well have been from his competitors. While US prisons can't compete on the nasty scale with Russia and Ukrainian models, they are apparently fairly dismal compared to British pens.

    4. PeterGriffin

      Re: Who appointed America as the world's policeman, judge and jury?

      Simple really. Look at where the buck (literally) stops it's the corporations who were harmed by high levels of fraud. They being VISA, MasterCard and American Express - all US Headquartered companies.

      1. Anonymous Coward
        Anonymous Coward

        Re: Who appointed America as the world's policeman, judge and jury?

        "it's the corporations who were harmed by high levels of fraud"

        No they weren't harmed. Fraud is an operating cost passed on to the companies who pay the card companies, mostly the merchants, and thus eventually borne by the consumer. There's plenty of cheap ways that card fraud could be reduced, but the card companies and the banks can't be bothered to act on those.

    5. Tom 13

      Re: Who appointed America as the world's policeman, judge and jury?

      Because we're the only ones willing to do the heavy lifting of finding, capturing, prosecuting, and punishing them.

  5. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    This is good

    18 years is good unlike the slap on the wrist that digital criminals in Blighty typically get.

    1. Anonymous Coward
      Anonymous Coward

      Re: This is good

      "18 years is good unlike the slap on the wrist that digital criminals in Blighty typically get."

      In the UK this guy would get an ASBO, right? Your political class doesn't like to punish criminals; they recognize them as kindred spirits.

  6. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    So ISPs block access to downloads yet these dodgy fraud sites are left alone?

  7. Samizdata
    Alert

    To edit or not to edit...

    CarderPlane? Really? C'mon now, I expect better from El Reg...

  8. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    Time served

    Arrested in 2003, that means he has been in jail for 10yr's. Sentence was 18yr's-10=8 and most non-violent criminals only serve half their sentence. Looks like he will be out anytime now.

  9. Stevie

    Bah!

    Hand him over to Ramsey Bolton.

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