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A ruthless ransomware negotiator who helped his gang rake in $56 million has been slapped with an 8.5-year prison sentence for conspiring to commit money laundering and wire fraud. Deniss Zolotarjovs, 35, was the go-to guy for the notorious Karakurt gang, which carried out a string of brazen cyberattacks, including a hack that shut down a government entity’s 911 system.
Victims of the gang’s attacks had their personal data stolen or encrypted, and were extorted for cryptocurrency payments. In one case, the gang used stolen children’s health information to increase the pressure on its victims.
Zolotarjovs was scooped up overseas in December 2023 and brought to the US in August 2024. He copped a plea in July 2025 and will now spend the next 102 months behind bars.
Cybercrime is a growing threat in the US, and the prosecution of Zolotarjovs shows that federal law enforcement has a global reach. ‘Ransomware groups disrupt victims’ lives, cruelly extracting money through psychological manipulation and fear,’ said US Attorney Dominick S. Gerace II. ‘We will hold accountable bad actors like Zolotarjovs.’
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