Indictment

Taiwan

2026-09-18 10:33:11

Taiwan cybersecurity institute deputy director indicted over 207,938 document scrapes and Azure LLM use

Prosecutors in Taipei have indicted four people tied to Taiwan’s National Institute of Cyber Security, including deputy director Hsu Shih-chang of its forward-looking research and procurement center, over allegations that they exploited internal system flaws to scrape official documents, personnel data, and workflow forms 207,938 times over nine months. According to the indictment, some of the scraped documents were then sent to Microsoft Azure’s large language model API to analyze procurement amounts and expected reimbursement schedules. Prosecutors said the scraping activity accounted for 85% of all document reads by institute staff and was used to build an internal budget system called XMAS. The case also alleges that after the institute cut VPN connectivity between internal and external networks in May 2025, one of the defendants used an institute-issued internal laptop with Cloudflare Tunnel to keep the crawler connected. Prosecutors said the scraped material included personal data and some classified documents, but added that there is currently no evidence the information was leaked to anyone outside current or former institute employees.

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Chunghwa Tele

2026-08-28 07:13:54

Former Chunghwa Telecom engineer indicted over cloud billing scheme tied to LAB Space

Taipei prosecutors have indicted a former engineer at Chunghwa Telecom, accusing him of abusing internal maintenance privileges to keep a cloud account used by his own company, LAB Space, in a non-billing state for nearly six years. Prosecutors said the setup let the account avoid regular fee calculation and invoice generation from 2017 until the issue was uncovered during a cloud billing review in February 2023, leaving Chunghwa Telecom short at least NT$33 million in service fees. The case was first detailed by ETtoday News Cloud. According to the indictment, the engineer had worked in the telecom operator’s cloud data center maintenance unit and also served as the de facto head of LAB Space. Prosecutors said he used an official account intended for testing and customer-environment simulation to change the billing setting. Before the matter surfaced, he allegedly forged a notice in Chunghwa Telecom’s name claiming an upcoming server migration could briefly interrupt websites, an apparent move to buy time and calm client concerns. The report says LAB Space took on website development projects for institutional and corporate clients while using Chunghwa Telecom’s resources. Prosecutors charged the former engineer with breach of trust, offenses related to unauthorized computer use, and document forgery.

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South Korea

2026-08-12 14:53:48

Ex-President Yoon Suk-yeol Indicted Over Emergency Martial Law Justification

South Korea's second comprehensive special investigation team on August 12 indicted former President Yoon Suk-yeol and former National Security Office chief Shin Won-sik, accusing them of spreading information that sought to justify the '12·3' emergency martial law declaration. The indictment, reported by Yonhap News Agency, brings the total number of criminal proceedings against Yoon to nine. The special investigation team said Yoon allegedly acted immediately after announcing emergency martial law on December 3, directing the National Security Office and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to convey to the United States, the United Kingdom, Japan and the European Union that 'the emergency martial law was justified.' The former president is now suspected of abuse of authority that obstructs the exercise of rights — specifically the charge of abusing his position to order civil servants to perform work that falls outside their official duties. The prosecution team filed the case on the same day that Yonhap reported the development, making it the latest in a series of criminal cases against the former president.

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bitcoin theft

2026-08-09 05:40:16

Three Men Face Up to 20 Years for Plot to Kidnap Bitcoin Heist Victims' Parents

Federal prosecutors in Connecticut have charged Sedric Louis, John Davis and Martel Williams with conspiracy to interfere with commerce by robbery, alleging they plotted to break into a home and force the transfer of cryptocurrency linked to a bitcoin theft valued at hundreds of millions of dollars. Each faces up to 20 years in prison. The three men from St. Louis traveled to Connecticut in August 2024, rented a vehicle and obtained air guns and walkie-talkies. They watched the target and his parents for two days, then abandoned the plan out of fear that home security cameras would identify them. A separate group from Florida later executed the same scheme and six people were arrested on Aug. 25 in connection with a carjacking involving a Lamborghini Urus. Louis and Davis have been held since June 25 and pleaded not guilty on July 30. Williams pleaded not guilty on July 17 and was granted bail. Prosecutors said the intended victims were parents of a person linked to the bitcoin theft. The indictment is not proof of guilt.

1840

Bitcoin

2026-08-05 11:13:51

Three Missouri Men Charged in Bitcoin Robbery Conspiracy, Face Up to 20 Years

Connecticut prosecutors have charged three Missouri men in an alleged conspiracy to rob bitcoin. The men are accused of surveilling a target and the target's parents in August 2024, then planning a home-invasion robbery intended to force the victim to transfer cryptocurrency. According to prosecutors, the charge carries a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison. Investigators said the group rented a vehicle and brought an air rifle to the scene, but abandoned the plan after worrying that surveillance cameras had recorded them. The case is connected to a kidnapping carried out by a Florida-based group. Two coordinators who have pleaded guilty are scheduled to be sentenced in August. The three newly charged defendants have all pleaded not guilty, and two of them remain in custody. crypto.news reported the charges, and the prosecutors' office said the alleged plot targeted the victim's digital assets.

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Turkey

2026-07-12 06:32:02

Turkish prosecutors indict Grand Bazaar-linked laundering network involving nearly TRY 40 billion

Turkish prosecutors have filed an indictment against a large money-laundering network linked to the Grand Bazaar, according to Hürriyet Daily News. The case involves nearly 40 billion Turkish lira, or about $850 million. The indictment names 504 suspects and accuses them of using shell companies, bank accounts, foreign exchange offices, POS terminals, and cryptocurrency transactions to conceal illicit proceeds. Prosecutors also allege that the suspects converted criminal funds into crypto and moved them abroad, while luring victims into fraudulent investment schemes with promises of high returns. In the filing, prosecutors are seeking up to 34.5 years in prison for alleged ringleader Türker Ak and up to 31 years for alleged network manager Murat Dönmezoğlu.

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Turkey

2026-07-12 06:27:43

Turkish prosecutors indict crypto-linked money laundering network tied to $850 million case

Turkish prosecutors have filed charges against a large money laundering network linked to the Grand Bazaar, with the case involving nearly 40 billion Turkish lira, or about $850 million. The indictment names 504 suspects and accuses them of concealing illicit proceeds through shell companies, bank accounts, foreign exchange offices, POS terminals, and cryptocurrency transactions. Prosecutors also allege that the group converted criminal proceeds into crypto and moved the funds abroad. In addition, suspects are accused of luring victims into fraudulent investment schemes by promising high returns. Prosecutors are seeking prison terms of up to 34.5 years for alleged ringleader Türker Ak and up to 31 years for alleged network manager Murat Dönmezoğlu, according to Odaily.

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