US Court Sentences Russian National Martyshev to 6.5 Years For Cybercrimes

Back in 2017, Russian citizen Yuri Martyshev along with Latvian resident Ruslan Bondar was accused by a US grand jury of intentionally causing damage to 10 or more protected computers in a 12-month period.

The US District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia sentenced Russian citizen Yuri Martyshev to six-and-a-half years in prison for being engaged in cybercrimes, a Sputnik correspondent reported from the courthouse on Friday.

"Seventy-eight months of incarceration", Judge Liam O'Grady said during Martyshev's sentencing hearing.

In March, Martyshev pleaded guilty to conspiring to access computers without authorisation and for computer intrusion with intent to cause damage. According to US prosecutors, the charges are related to Martyshev's involvement with an online hacking software scheme called Scan4you.

The judge also said Martyshev must pay $8 million in restitution along with $200 for a "special assessment."

However, Martyshev's lawyer Alexey Tarasov told Sputnik that in practice the penalty may never be paid and especially not immediately.

In his testimony before sentencing Martyshev said that he acknowledges his guilt and promises to change behavior in the future.

"I will never return to anything that would harm other people," Martyshev said.

Martyshev also apologized to the judge, prosecutors and his family.

"I had enough time to think about what I have done," the defendant said. "By sitting at home in front of the computer, I did not understand all consequences."

Martyshev said he acknowledges his guilt and understands all the consequences of his legal activity.

READ MORE: Russian Foreign Ministry Confirms US National Held for Spying has UK Citizenship

In April of 2017, Martyshev was arrested in Latvia and extradited to the United States where he was indicted on four counts of cyber-related crimes. US authorities alleged that Martyshev, who is also a citizen of Latvia, accessed computers without authorization, aided cyberattacks, and committed wire fraud.

Martyshev in May testified against co-defendant Ruslans Bondars, a Latvian resident who was sentenced to 14 years in a US prison, the Justice Department said.

According to the Justice Department, Bondars operated Scan4you — an online counter antivirus service that helped computer hackers illegally access networks. Hackers used the service to steal millions of credit and debit card numbers and hack US corporations which led to some 20.5 billion in losses, US authorities have said.

The Russian Embassy in the United States said that Martyshev was apprehended in Latvia in violation of the 1999 Treaty between the United States and Russia on Mutual Legal Assistance in Criminal Matters.