Three men charged in the United States allegedly used artificial intelligence to impersonate corporate executives and lawyers in a scheme that took more than $129 million from companies around the world, according to a newly unsealed indictment described by The Guardian’s report. The charges concern an alleged operation that ran from 2024 to 2026.
Jacob Soall, Sharon Hazan and Guy Sheetrit were arrested after authorities accused them of altering voices and images to pose as company leaders and attorneys. Soall and Hazan were arrested in Spain over the summer, while Sheetrit was arrested in the United Kingdom in September. The charges are allegations, and the source does not report convictions.
Three Men Charged After Alleged Payment Scheme
According to the account of a Justice Department announcement, the men allegedly contacted employees while posing as corporate executives handling sensitive financial transactions. They directed employees to contact lawyers at a large international law firm, then allegedly impersonated those lawyers and instructed employees to wire money.
The reported losses included nearly $5 million from a Missouri-headquartered hospital system, about $2.7 million from a Rhode Island bank and about $3 million from a California hospital system. The alleged victims also included a Massachusetts-headquartered mutual fund, which lost over $4.6 million, and a Florida pet food company, which lost about $5 million. A United Kingdom technology company allegedly lost over $11 million.
Transfers Crossed Borders Before Cryptocurrency Conversion
Employees were allegedly directed to send funds to bank accounts in several countries. The source names the United States, Spain, Portugal, Greece, the United Arab Emirates, Singapore, Austria, Slovakia and China among the destinations.
After transfers, the men allegedly converted the money into cryptocurrency. The Justice Department said the conversion was intended to conceal the source, ownership and control of the proceeds before they were distributed among the defendants and alleged co-conspirators.
Financial institutions also appear in other coverage on the site, including reporting on financial partnerships in blockchain. That article concerns separate business developments and does not describe the alleged fraud in this case.
Three Men Face Fraud And Identity Theft Charges
The indictment charges the men with conspiracy to commit wire fraud, various counts of money-laundering conspiracy and aggravated identity theft. The report does not say that any defendant has been convicted.
The source says Soall and Hazan used aliases. Soall allegedly went by “Seba Clarke” and “Rocky Balboa”; Hazan allegedly used “Superman Cash,” “Fat Boy” and “Ron.” These names are part of the allegations reported in the case.
Jamie McDonald, a US attorney, said in a statement that artificial intelligence has significant potential, while warning that some people may use it for criminal purposes. James C Barnacle Jr, the FBI assistant director in charge, said the alleged scheme showed how advanced technology could be exploited for large-scale fraud. He said the FBI was committed to adapting its capabilities to identify, investigate and disrupt people seeking to harm New Yorkers and businesses operating in local communities.
The broader uses of artificial intelligence are also being examined in other settings. Block Editorial has reported on Estonia’s planned AI review, where analysts are expected to examine the tool’s preliminary work. In healthcare, its coverage of hospital screening technology describes a separate technology rollout. Neither article concerns the allegations in this indictment.
The report identifies the charges but does not report a court outcome.
