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Russian sentenced to 30 months in US for administering a website that catered to criminals

US District Judge Cynthia Bashant acknowledged that Kirill Firsov had been incarcerated in the United States for 15 months

NEW YORK, May 25. /TASS/. Russian national Kirill Firsov has been sentenced by a court in California to 30 months behind bars for running a website selling stolen, counterfeit and hacked accounts, the US Department of Justice said.

"Kirill Victorovich Firsov, a Russian citizen, was sentenced to 30 months in custody for his role as the administrator of a website that catered to cyber criminals by virtually selling items such as stolen credit card information, other personal information and services to be used for criminal activity," the Department of Justice said in a statement.

US District Judge Cynthia Bashant acknowledged that Firsov had been incarcerated in the United States for 15 months. This count carries a maximum penalty of 10 years. Once released, Firsov will likely be incarcerated as he underwent deportation proceedings back to Russia.

According to the Department of Justice, Firsov led online platform Deer.io, based in Russia, which hosted approximately 3,000 active shops. Shop owners on the platform sold at least $1.2 mln in US-based stolen information, including not only gamer accounts, but also current addresses, telephone numbers and at times Social Security numbers.

The US authorities apprehended Firsov at JFK Airport in New York on March 7, 2020 following an FBI operation to purchase the personal information for over 3,600 Americans.

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