US Bitcoin exchange operator is jailed for laundering proceeds of ransomware attacks

A Florida man was sentenced on Tuesday to serve five and a half years in prison after pleading guilty to operating an illegal bitcoin exchange suspected of laundering money for hackers and linked to a data breach at JPMorgan Chase & Co.

Anthony Murgio, 33, of Tampa, pleaded guilty on January 9 to three conspiracy counts, including bank fraud and operating an unlicensed money transmitting business. The sentence was roughly half as long as prosecutors sought.

Murgio and co-conspirators were accused of having processed millions of dollars from 2013 to 2015 into the virtual currency bitcoin through the unlicensed exchange Coin.mx.

Prosecutors said many transactions were conducted by victims of ransomware, a malicious software that locks up data unless people pay “ransom” to unlock it. Cybercriminals often demand ransom paid in bitcoin, which is the case with an unrelated, still-unfolding, global cyberattack which broke out on Tuesday.

Murgio’s alleged schemes also involved the takeover of a New Jersey credit union to shield their activity. The credit union was later liquidated.