Among those arrested was Filipino mastermind of heist group who next targeted stealing from Gcash accounts
(Eagle News) — Five individuals, two of whom are Nigerian nationals, have been arrested by the National Bureau of Investigation for their involvement in the “Mark Nagoyo Heist Group”, a group responsible for hacking BDO affecting more than 700 customers last December.
NBI Officer-In-Charge (OIC) Director Eric B. Distor identified the five suspects as Nigerian nationals Ifesinachi Fountain Anaekwe A.K.A. Daddy Champ, Chukwuemeka Peter Nwadi, and three Filipinos — Jherom Anthony Taupa Y Diawan, Ronelyn Panaligan, and Clay S. Revillosa.
Taupa, one of the masterminds of the “Mark Nagoyo Heist Group, was arrested last January 18 in an entrapment operation by the NBI. He was now moving into creating a scam or fake webpage of Gcash to “gather the log in details of unwitting victims” and stealing money from their Gcash accounts, according to the NBI.
The Nigerian nationals were arrested in an entrapment operation conducted by operatives of NBI-Cybercrime Division (NBI-CCD) in Mabalacat, Pampanga, also on January 18.
This was after the NBI received information from an informant who had transactions with the suspects. The informant voluntarily appeared before the NBI-CCD to give information regarding several individuals believed to be leaders, members, or affiliates of Mark Nagoyo Group.
-More than 700 BDO customers affected-
This group was responsible for the massive hacking of BDO that affected more than 700 of its customers last December, the NBI said. The suspects were able to access customers’ bank accounts while supposedly bypassing the One-Time-Pin requirement and drained funds in those accounts.
“Email confirmations for the bulk of the illegal transfers showed that they were made by a certain MARK D. NAGOYO,” the NBI said in a release.
“According to the informant, the subjects were engaged in the business of providing access devices to anyone looking for options to cash out funds fraudulently obtained. These access devices range from bank accounts, crypto wallets, or even point-of-sale terminals of otherwise legitimate merchants. Further, when a certain MARK FROILAN called the informant about money cash outs, the latter contacted DADDY CHAMP who then said that he will provide the informant three (3) different accounts so she can be transferring in it Php 10 Million each, apparently referring to the funds from BDO alluded to by MARK FROILAN,” the NBI said.
“With these, the entrapment operation was hatched resulting in the arrest of Subjects Ifesinachi Fountain Anaekwe a.k.a. Daddy Champ and his companion Chukwuemeka Peter Nwadi after they were caught in flagrante delicto offering accounts for sale,” the NBI said in its release.
-Filipino mastermind next targeted Gcash accounts-
Meanwhile, the NBI also announced the arrest of Taupa in a buy-bust operation in Floridablanca, Pampanga for selling “scampage” or phishing website. Another informant had informed the NBI that Taupa was one of the masterminds of the “Mark Nagoyo Heist.”
The informant told the NBI that Taupa “is currently offering for sale scampage, particularly an imitation of Gcash Webpage.”
“Accordingly, TAUPA modified the code in order to gather the log in details of unwitting victims who would access the scampage in the mistaken belief that they were opening Gcash’s official portal. The owner of the scampage would thus be able to get into the victim’s Gcash accounts to steal their hard-earned funds,” the NBI said.
“To prove his averments, informant showed the operatives his conversation with TAUPA showing their past transactions involving scampage,” it added.
The buy-bust operation was then conducted. The informant and Taupa “agreed on the price of Php 2,000.00 to be paid in cash direct as consideration for the scampage.”
Taupa was arrested after receiving the marked money. He then admitted that he was “selling Gcash scampages which he stored in his computer.”
(Eagle News Service)