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Lamborghinis, baby lions, and stacks of cash: The Russian hackers in charge of 'Evil Corp' are living an absurdly lavish lifestyle
Lamborghinis, baby lions, and stacks of cash: The Russian hackers in charge of 'Evil Corp' are living an absurdly lavish lifestyle
Ben GilbertDec 6, 2019, 19:49 IST
National Crime AgencyEvil Corp member Andrey Plotnitskiy.
The Russian hacking group Evil Corp is being sought by various international governments and suspected of a wide range of illegal activities.
According to the UK's National Crime Agency, the group's leader Maksim "Aqua" Yakubets is responsible for "two separate international computer hacking and bank fraud schemes" across the last 10 years that allowed his hacking group to steal millions of dollars.
Photos released of the group's lavish lifestyle offer a look at how they spend the millions they're accused of stealing, from exotic animals to custom Lamborghinis.
The millionaire leader of what authorities call "the world's most harmful cyber crime group," Evil Corp, lives a life full of luxury items and exotic animals.
Maksim "Aqua" Yakubets, a 32-year-old Russian man, was indicted on Thursday by US authorities. He's charged with carrying out "two separate international computer hacking and bank fraud schemes" across the last 10 years, which have allegedly siphoned millions of dollars from UK citizens into the coffers of Evil Corp.
Since Yakubets resides in Russia, the indictments won't impact him unless he leaves the country. "If Yakubets ever leaves the safety of Russia," the UK National Crime Agency said, "he will be arrested and extradited the US."
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For now, Yakubets still lives in Russia and is apparently living it up alongside his cohorts. When they're not driving his custom Lamborghinis, or taking videos of a lion cub roaming an ornate rug, they're posing for photos with wads of cash.
Alongside the news of the indictments, the NCA released a variety of images and video depicting the lavish lifestyles of Yakubets and his cohorts.
Here's a closer look at that custom Lamborghini Huracan, a car that costs approximately $250,000 before any customization:
That's far from the only fancy vehicle in his portfolio — he's also got a Nissan GT-R, an Audi R8, and a Dodge Challenger:
A video montage of their lives depicts tire burnouts, goofing around with electronics, and a surprising appearance from a lion cub:
Members of Evil Corp are living a lavish lifestyle, funded by the life savings of their victims.
If Maksim Yakubets, who used the online identity of ‘Aqua’, ever leaves the safety of Russia he will be arrested and extradited to the US. pic.twitter.com/BdoaxZrFBK
Another such video details the life of Yakubets specifically, from his custom Lambo to his ornate 2017 wedding:
Yakubets drives a customised Lamborghini supercar with a personalised number plate that translates to ‘Thief’ & spent over a quarter of a million pounds on his wedding.
He is now subject to a $5 million US State Department reward – the largest ever reward for a cyber criminal. pic.twitter.com/a7s9tKFutt
One final image was also released: Yakubets' wanted poster.
The FBI is offering as much as $5 million for information that could lead to the arrest and/or conviction of Evil Corp's leader Maksim Yakubets. It's the largest-ever reward offered by the FBI for an alleged cyber criminal.
