A 28-year-old Miami man who made millions breaking into computer networks and stealing credit-card numbers pleaded guilty on Friday and agreed to forfeit more than $2.7m in restitution, as well as property, jewellery and a car.
Albert Gonzalez, a former federal government informant and the alleged ringleader of one of the largest known identity theft cases in US history, pleaded guilty (as expected) to 19 counts of conspiracy, computer fraud, wire fraud, access device fraud, and aggravated identity theft related to theft of credit-card and debit-card data from TJX Companies (owner of TK Maxx), BJ's Wholesale Club, OfficeMax, Boston Market, Barnes & Noble, Sports Authority, among other retailers.
Gonzalez, along with 10 others from the US, Eastern Europe and China, were accused in August 2008 of breaking into retail credit-card payment systems using wardriving (searching for unsecured wireless networks while driving by with a laptop), and installing sniffer programs to capture data.
He also pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud related to hacks into the network of the Dave & Buster's restaurant chain. He was indicted on that charge in New York in May 2008.
Gonzalez still faces charges in New Jersey of conspiring to steal credit-card numbers from Heartland Payment Systems, 7-Eleven and supermarket chain Hannaford Brothers following an indictment handed down against him and two unnamed Russians last month.
Gonzalez and his alleged co-conspirators sold the numbers to others and encoded the data onto magnetic stripes of blank cards and used the new cards to withdraw tens of thousands of dollars at a time from ATMs, according to the indictments.
They concealed and laundered their proceeds by using anonymous internet-based currencies within the US and abroad, and by channelling money through bank accounts in Eastern Europe, court documents indicate.
Under the terms of the plea agreements, Gonzalez faces up to 25 years in prison for the Boston charges and up to 20 years on the New York charges and will serve the terms concurrently. He also faces fines of at least $500,000 (£300,000).
As for restitution, Gonzalez has agreed to forfeit his Miami condo, a 2006 BMW 330i, a Tiffany diamond ring, Rolex watches, and more than $1m in cash that was buried in his back yard.
Sentencing is scheduled for 8 December. Gonzalez's attorney, Rene Palomino, did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
