October 18, 2023 at 10:24AM
Former US Navy IT manager, Marquis Hooper, was sentenced to five years and five months in prison after hacking into a database, stealing personally identifiable information (PII), and selling it on the dark web. Hooper and his wife, Natasha Chalk, stole the PII of over 9,000 individuals, selling it for $160,000 in Bitcoin. Some buyers used the stolen information for criminal activities. Chalk faces up to 20 years in prison and a fine of $250,000.
In a recent meeting, it was discussed that a former US Navy IT manager named Marquis Hooper has been sentenced to five years and five months in prison for hacking into a database, stealing personally identifiable information (PII), and selling it on the dark web. Hooper, along with his wife and co-defendant Natasha Chalk, opened a fraudulent account at a private company that operates the database, under the pretext of conducting background checks for the Navy. They were able to steal the PII of over 9,000 individuals and sold it for $160,000 in Bitcoin on the dark web. The court documents also revealed that some of the buyers of the stolen PII used it to commit crimes, such as creating fake driver’s licenses for financial gain. Hooper tried to regain access to the database by having an unindicted co-conspirator open a new account, but their efforts were unsuccessful. Natasha Chalk is scheduled for sentencing on November 20 and could face up to 20 years in prison and a fine of $250,000.