Arizona woman pleads guilty to scheme that generated $17M for North Korea
PHOENIX — An Arizona woman pleaded guilty to defrauding U.S. companies in a scheme that assisted overseas IT workers — posing as U.S. citizens and residents — illegally, generating more than $17 million in revenue for herself and North Korea, federal prosecutors said.
Christina Marie Chapman, 48, of Litchfield Park, Arizona, pleaded guilty Tuesday to "conspiracy to commit wire fraud, aggravated identity theft, and conspiracy to launder monetary instruments," according to a statement from the U.S. Attorney's Office, District of Columbia. Under the plea agreement, the parties recommended a sentence of 94 to 111 months in federal prison.
U.S. District Court Judge Randolph D. Moss scheduled sentencing for June 16.
According to prosecutors, Chapman was involved in a scheme that assisted overseas IT workers who posed as U.S. citizens and residents to work in remote positions at more than 300 companies. She conspired with overseas IT workers from October 2020 to October 2023 to steal the identities of U.S. citizens to apply for remote jobs, prosecutors said.
Advancing the scheme, prosecutors said Chapman transmitted false documents to the Department of Homeland Security. Chapman and her coconspirators obtained hundreds of U.S. jobs, including at Fortune 500 companies, through staffing and contracting organizations.
'Opportunities to impersonate legitimate IT workers'
Prosecutors said Chapman created a "laptop farm" in her home so that companies would believe the workers were in the U.S. The workers, who received more than $17.1 million for their work, gained access to the internal systems of the U.S. companies with her assistance.
As a result, over 300 U.S. companies were impacted and more than 70 U.S. individuals had their identities compromised and false tax liabilities created in their names, the U.S. Attorney's Office said in its release. Income was falsely reported to the Internal Revenue Service and Social Security Administration using the names of people in the U.S. whose identities had been stolen.
The case is the latest in federal efforts to stop North Korean remote worker fraud. Similar schemes have taken off in recent years, experts have said, as American companies cannot hire nationals of the belligerent nation due to sanctions.
“Because of the pandemic and remote work they've had greater success in terms of the revenue-raising activity,” Scott Snyder, CEO of the Korea Economic Institute of America, said of North Korea. "The rise of remote work has given North Korea opportunities to impersonate legitimate IT workers."
According to prosecutors, Chapman created a "laptop farm" in her home so that companies would believe the workers were in the U.S. The workers gained access to the internal systems of U.S. companies with Chapman's assistance.
Contributing: Michael Loria, Paste BN