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United States Leads Dismantlement of One of the World’s Largest Hacker Forums

Source: United States Department of Justice Criminal Division

The Department of Justice announced today the seizure of the LeakBase database, one of the world’s largest online forums for cybercriminals to buy and sell stolen data and cybercrime tools.

According to an affidavit unsealed on March 3, the LeakBase forum had over 142,000 members and more than 215,000 messages between members. Available on the open web and in English, the forum had an enormous and continuously updated archive of hacked databases including many from high profile attacks, including hundreds of millions of account credentials. LeakBase allowed forum users to sell the information from stolen databases, including data illegally obtained from U.S. corporations and individuals, and offered credit and debit card numbers, banking account and routing information, usernames and associated passwords which could facilitate additional account takeovers, as well as other sensitive business and personally identifiable information.

On March 3 and 4, law enforcement agents and officers in 14 countries including the United States took synchronized actions against LeakBase and its users in a coordinated effort hosted by Europol in The Hague. Specifically, the United States and other countries shut down LeakBase, seized its data and two of the domains used by the forum, posted seizure banners on the LeakBase sites, sent prevention messages to LeakBase members, and collected additional evidence. Law enforcement also executed search warrants, arrests, and conducted interviews in the United States, Australia, Belgium, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Spain, and the United Kingdom.  

LeakBase Splash Page

“The takedown of this cyber forum disrupts a major international platform that cybercriminals use to obtain and profit from the theft of sensitive personal, banking and account credentials,” said Assistant Attorney General A. Tysen Duva of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division. “This operation illustrates the strength of the United States and our international partners working across the globe to dismantle a critical cybercriminal forum. The Criminal Division will continue to leverage our international relationships to protect victim personal and account information from falling into the hands of transnational criminal organizations.”

“This 14-country operation demonstrates the extraordinary cooperation with our international partners,” said U.S. Attorney Melissa Holyoak of the District of Utah. “Working with our partners, we can take down even the most sophisticated cyber criminals and networks. My office remains steadfast in our commitment to investigate and seek justice for Americans who are targeted by individuals attempting to hide behind foreign borders.”

“The FBI, Europol, and law enforcement agencies from around the world executed a takedown of LeakBase, one of the largest online cybercriminal platforms, seizing users’ accounts, posts, credit details, private messages, and IP logs for evidentiary purposes,” said Assistant Director Brett Leatherman of the FBI’s Cyber Division. “Together with our partners, we are sending a message that no criminal is truly anonymous online and removing an easy point of access to stolen information on American businesses and individuals. The FBI will continue to defend the homeland by dismantling the key services that cybercriminals use to facilitate their attacks.”

“Hiding behind a screen does not shield cybercriminals from accountability,” said Special Agent in Charge Robert Bohls of the FBI Salt Lake City Field Office. “This international operation demonstrates the strength of our global alliances and our shared commitment to disrupting platforms that facilitate the theft of data and the victimization of innocent people and organizations worldwide. Together, we will continue to identify, dismantle, and hold accountable those who seek to profit from cybercrime, no matter where they operate.”

The announcement today follows the disruption of predecessor cybercrime marketplaces RaidForums in 2022 and BreachForums in 2023, in addition to the conviction and subsequent sentencing of the founder of BreachForums in 2025.

The FBI Salt Lake City Field Office is investigating the case. The FBI San Diego Field Office, Utah Department of Public Safety, and Provo Police Department also participated in the operation domestically.

Senior Counsel Matthew A. Lamberti of the Criminal Division’s Computer Crime and Intellectual Property Section and Assistant U.S. Attorneys Brent L. Andrus and Carl D. LeSueur for the District of Utah are prosecuting the case. The Justice Department’s Office of International Affairs, Europol, and numerous law enforcement authorities in Australia, Belgium, Canada, Germany, Greece, Kosovo, Malaysia, Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Spain, and the United Kingdom provided significant assistance.

CCIPS investigates and prosecutes cybercrime and intellectual property (IP) crime in coordination with domestic and international law enforcement agencies, often with assistance from the private sector. Since 2020, CCIPS has secured the conviction of over 180 cybercriminals and IP criminals, and court orders for the return of over $350 million in victim funds.

Anyone that has any information regarding LeakBase should contact the FBI at FBI-SU-Leakbase@fbi.gov.

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Justice Department Secures Settlement in Sexual Harassment Lawsuit Against Green Bay Landlord

Source: United States Department of Justice Criminal Division

The Justice Department announced today that the David Jones and D Jones Properties LLC have agreed to pay $50,000 to resolve a lawsuit alleging that Jones sexually harassed a female tenant in violation of the Fair Housing Act (FHA).

The Justice Department’s lawsuit was filed in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Wisconsin on July 24, 2025. The complaint alleges that Jones — who manages multiple rental properties in Green Bay, Wisconsin — engaged in severe, pervasive, and unwelcome sexual harassment of a female tenant by, among other things, making unwelcome sexual comments, grabbing the tenant without her consent, entering the tenant’s home without her permission, and moving to evict her when she asserted her rights under the FHA.

“Women should never feel unsafe in their own homes,” said Assistant Attorney General Harmeet K. Dhillon of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division. “The Justice Department will vigorously protect the rights of vulnerable tenants subjected to sexual harassment and hold housing providers accountable when they violate the law.”

“Every tenant has the right to feel safe and secure in their home,” said U.S. Attorney Brad D. Schimel for the Eastern District of Wisconsin. “This settlement sends a clear message that sexual harassment in housing will not be tolerated.”

“As the Trump Administration’s top fair housing official, I am committed to ending the scourge of sexual harassment in housing and obtaining compensatory justice for the victims who have had to endure it,” said Assistant Secretary for Fair Housing and Equal Opportunity Craig W. Trainor of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. “This settlement makes clear that Secretary Turner’s HUD will aggressively pursue Fair Housing Act violators while ensuring women feel safe and secure in their homes.”

Under the settlement agreement, Defendants must pay $50,000 to the tenant. The agreement also requires Jones to attend fair housing training and provides for a two-year monitoring period by the Justice Department.

The case was referred to the Division after the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) received a complaint, completed an investigation, and issued a charge of discrimination.

If you are a victim of sexual harassment by a landlord or property manager or have suffered other forms of housing discrimination, call the Justice Department’s Housing Discrimination Tip Line at 1-800-896-7743 or submit a report online to the Department of Justice or to the Department of Housing and Urban Development. More information about the Civil Rights Division and the laws it enforces is available at www.justice.gov/crt. This settlement is part of the Justice Department’s Sexual Harassment in Housing Initiative. The initiative, which the Department launched in October 2017, seeks to address and raise awareness about sexual harassment by landlords, property managers, maintenance workers, loan officers and other people who have control over housing. Since launching the initiative, the department has filed 52 lawsuits alleging sexual harassment in housing and recovered more than $19 million for victims of such harassment.

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Springfield Man Sentenced to Over 12 Years in Prison for Federal Hate Crime Violation

Source: United States Department of Justice Criminal Division

A Springfield, Oregon, man was sentenced to federal prison today for a federal hate crime after assaulting a victim on the basis of their sexual orientation.

Daniel Andrew McGee, 26, was sentenced to 151 months in federal prison and five years of supervised release.

“The right to live safely in one’s community is a fundamental civil right,”  said U.S. Attorney Scott E. Bradford for the District of Oregon. “The District of Oregon remains committed to combatting hate crimes and protecting that right for all. While no conviction can undo the harm caused, we hope this sentence will bring some measure of justice to the victim and our community.”

“Hate crimes impact not just individuals, but entire communities,” said Acting Special Agent in Charge Matt Torres of the FBI Portland Field Office. “The FBI works together with our partners to prevent hate crimes from impacting our communities, and every attack on someone because of who and what they are deserves to be acted on by the full extent of the law.”

According to court documents, on the evening of July 5, 2021, McGee met the victim at the victim’s apartment after communicating on the dating application Grindr, an application originally designed for, and primarily used by, gay men. McGee assaulted the victim over the course of several minutes, striking the victim on the head with a wooden tire thumper and using his hands to try to gouge the victim’s eyes out. The victim sustained life-threatening injuries during the assault, including serious head wounds.

The investigation revealed McGee had been researching and planning the attack for weeks. For at least one month prior to the attack, McGee searched the internet for homophobic and graphically violent anti-gay material. McGee planned for the attack by purchasing the weapon and other materials from Amazon and searching the internet for suggestions on how to get away with murder.

On Nov. 18, 2021, a federal grand jury in Eugene, Oregon, returned a one-count indictment charging McGee with a federal hate crime involving an attempt to kill.

On Nov. 25, 2025, McGee pleaded guilty to count one of the indictment.

The FBI investigated the case with assistance from the Eugene Police Department. 

Assistant U.S. Attorney Joseph Huynh for the District of Oregon and Trial Attorney Tenette Smith for the Civil Rights Division Criminal Section prosecuted the case.

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Financial Advisor Convicted Of Scheme To Defraud Professional Basketball Players

Source: United States Department of Justice Criminal Division

United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, Jay Clayton, announced the conviction of DARRYL COHEN for defrauding three professional basketball players who were among his former financial advisory clients, following a five-week jury trial before U.S. District Judge Vernon S. Broderick. 

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GAINESVILLE FELON CHARGED WITH ARMED DRUG TRAFFICKING AND ILLEGAL POSSESSION OF A FIREARM

Source: United States Department of Justice Criminal Division

GAINESVILLE, FLORIDA – Eddie Jerome Scott, 38, of Gainesville, Florida, was indicted by a federal grand jury charging him with two counts of distribution of methamphetamine, one count of possession with intent to distribute a controlled substance over 50 grams of methamphetamine, cocaine and fentanyl, possessing a firearm in connection with drug trafficking, and possession of a firearm and ammunition by a convicted felon. 

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Four Operation Mobile Order Defendants Sentenced to Prison

Source: United States Department of Justice Criminal Division

MACON, Ga. – Four defendants were sentenced to prison this week after the FBI’s two-year Operation Mobile Order investigation uncovered their Macon-based armed drug trafficking network, responsible for distributing kilograms of cocaine and resulting in the seizure of 26 firearms, including a machinegun.

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Lynchburg Store Owner Pleads Guilty to Federal Food Stamp Fraud

Source: United States Department of Justice Criminal Division

LYNCHBURG, Va. – The owner of Taste of India, a medium-sized grocery store in Lynchburg, pled guilty today to federal food stamp fraud and other charges.Rajan Babbar, 59, pled guilty today to one count of fraud regarding the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), formerly known as the Food Stamp Program and one count of transacting in criminally derived property. SNAP was established by the United States government to alleviate hunger and malnutrition among low and middle-income families by increasing their food purchasing power and ability.

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Defense News: Precision Sustainment in the Arctic: 402nd AFSB’s LSE (D) Supports 11th Airborne During JPMRC Alaska

Source: United States Army

ALASKA — In the unforgiving Arctic environment, where extreme cold, distance and terrain impose relentless demands on Soldiers and equipment alike, sustainment operations must function with precision, adaptability and speed.

During Joint Pacific Multinational Readiness Center (JPMRC) Alaska, the Logistics Support Element (Division), assigned to the 402nd Army Field Support Brigade under Army Sustainment Command, served as a conduit between the 11th Airborne Division and the Army Materiel Command enterprise — accelerating solutions that extended beyond the tactical level.

The 402nd AFSB, as Army Sustainment Command’s theater Army Field Support Brigade for U.S. Army Pacific, delivers enterprise sustainment across the Indo-Pacific through its Army Field Support Battalions in Alaska and Hawaii. For Army Field Support Battalion–Alaska, JPMRC represents a large-scale validation of its ability to integrate installation support, enterprise reach and field-level responsiveness in one of the Army’s most demanding environments.

Rather than acting as an additional layer of command, the LSE (D) provides access to enterprise-level capabilities designed to resolve sustainment challenges that exceed division-level capacity. By synchronizing with the 11th Airborne Division G-4 and working alongside AFSBn–Alaska sustainment professionals, the team translates operational friction into actionable requirements addressed through Life Cycle Management Commands and subject-matter experts across the Army.

“Our role during JPMRC was to connect division-level challenges to enterprise-level solutions,” said Maj. Makar. “When a problem exceeded the tactical level, we leveraged the Army Materiel Command network to resolve it rapidly.”

Lt. Col. Eric J. Erickson, commander of AFSBn–Alaska, explained that the LSE (D) provides capabilities not organic to the division’s sustainment structure.

“The LSE provides direct synchronization of Life Cycle Management Command representatives and enables effective command and control of enterprise-level sustainment capabilities,” Erickson said. “It connects the division to specialized expertise and resources that are not organic to the formation.”

That enterprise reach proved decisive when an electrical issue rendered a Light Medium Tactical Vehicle non-mission capable. After unit-level troubleshooting and evacuation procedures were completed, the LSE (D) engaged a Tank-automotive and Armaments Command Logistics Assistance Representative to diagnose and correct the failure. The vehicle was restored to operational status within 24 hours, preserving combat power during a critical phase of the rotation.

Enterprise integration extended beyond ground platforms. When communications degradation threatened connectivity across dispersed training areas, the LSE (D) exercised a call forward to engage Communications-Electronics Command subject-matter experts.

“We exercised a call forward and physically drove into the exercise area to work on a Very Small Aperture Terminal, or VSAT,” Makar said. “Due to the satellites’ equatorial positioning, the dish required precise re-triangulation. Until formations fully transition to next-generation systems, those terminals remain critical to operations.”

By rapidly connecting units to specialized expertise, the 402nd AFSB ensured communications — and therefore mission command — remained uninterrupted during the rotation.

Beyond resolving individual equipment failures, the LSE (D) and AFSBn–Alaska contribute to enterprise-wide readiness by identifying trends that extend beyond a single formation or rotation.

“We have the ability to operate at the enterprise level,” Makar said. “For aviation systems, we observed recurring issues with blower motors inside AH-64 cockpits. Those failures followed a predictable cycle. By providing that trend analysis to the Army Materiel Command enterprise, we help drive solutions that impact the entire fleet — not just one unit.”

Through digital tools and shared visibility platforms, the LSE (D) translates operational data gathered during exercises like JPMRC into actionable insights. Leveraging platforms such as Vantage and Maven, the team aggregates maintenance data, identifies recurring failure patterns and strengthens predictive sustainment efforts. Rather than reacting to equipment breakdowns, sustainment planners can anticipate demand signals and adjust support posture before readiness is degraded.

This enterprise feedback loop ensures lessons learned in Alaska strengthen readiness far beyond the Arctic.

While sustainment processes remain consistent between garrison and exercise environments, the Arctic amplifies every variable.

“In Alaska, temperature changes everything,” Erickson said. “Extreme cold impacts maintenance timelines, equipment reliability and the way we manage personnel. We’ve conducted operations in temperatures as low as minus 50 degrees, with wind chills reaching minus 56. At those levels, work-rest cycles become critical — you might spend 15 minutes outside and require 45 minutes inside to recover. Even receiving a HIMARS system overnight requires thawing the equipment before we can safely begin maintenance. Sustainment here requires anticipation, adaptation and respect for the environment.”

These realities transform sustainment into a matter of survivability as much as readiness, underscoring the importance of AFSBn–Alaska’s daily mission in support of the 11th Airborne Division.

Looking beyond the current rotation, Erickson said JPMRC provides measurable feedback for both installation-level support and enterprise integration.

“From an installation perspective, we’re examining policies and processes — particularly in areas like Central Issue Facility operations — to identify opportunities to streamline support and remove friction,” Erickson said. “From the LSE perspective, maintaining a fully integrated Logistics Support Element during JPMRC demonstrates measurable value to the division. It reinforces the importance of enterprise synchronization and positions us to refine that model moving forward.”

Exercises like JPMRC serve as validation points for both the battalion and the broader 402nd AFSB network, testing equipment endurance, sustainment systems and operational processes under extreme conditions.

Ultimately, the LSE (D) and AFSBn–Alaska enable the warfighter by preserving time and combat power.

“It saves time, preserves readiness and allows units to focus on warfighting skills,” Makar said. “We are strategic enablers, solving Army-wide problems at the point of friction.”

For leaders across the force, the message is clear: the 402nd Army Field Support Brigade and its subordinate battalions provide scalable, enterprise-connected sustainment designed to meet the combatant commander’s demand signal — in Alaska and across the Indo-Pacific.

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Takeshi Ebisawa Sentenced To 20 Years In Prison For Conspiring To Traffic Nuclear Materials, Narcotics, And Firearms

Source: United States Department of Justice Criminal Division

United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, Jay Clayton, Administrator of the Drug Enforcement Administration (“DEA”), Terrance Cole, and Assistant Attorney General for National Security, John A. Eisenberg, announced today that TAKESHI EBISAWA, a Japanese national, was sentenced today to 20 years in prison by U.S. District Judge Colleen McMahon for his participation in a conspiracy to traffic nuclear materials, including uranium and weapons-grade plutonium, from Burma to other countries, as well as his participation in international narcotics trafficking, weapons, and money laundering crimes.