A Florida attorney has admitted his role in an extortion attempt of a New Jersey commercial bank in which he tried to coerce $7.5 million from the financial institution.
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Richard L. Williams, of Miami, Florida, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to transmit an interstate communication with the intent to extort after threatening the bank with the release of confidential bank data his client had obtained.
According to the charges, on May 8th Williams’ client recorded digital images and videos of confidential information from the bank’s website that he was not authorized to obtain.
From that point on Williams contacted the bank several times, claiming they could prevent him publicly revealing his client’s acquisition of their data, but only if he received a substantial payment.
Williams claimed the $7.5 million asking price was in exchange for his client acting as the bank’s “advisor” for one week, but prosecutors say in reality it was to avoid the data breach being publicized which would detrimentally effect the bank’s reputation — a clear extortion case.
The charges allege Williams demanded the millions when he contacted an undercover agent he believed to be an employee of the bank.
In July, and lasting through August, Williams contacted an undercover law enforcement agent he believed was a representative of the NJ bank. He continually attempted to set up the multi-million-dollar handoff, warning the bank should fear” that his client might reveal the confidential data or “issue a press release disclosing that information.”
In an ever-changing virtual environment, cybersecurity concerns are always growing. Those institutions with breaches are immediately asked the question, “How much are we willing to pay to fix this?” The answer will vary between business, but the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of New Jersey is ensuring those questions are hypothetical rather than coming from a state-barred attorney.
“He looks forward to putting this behind him,” Williams’ attorney, Wanda M. Akin, said by phone on Tuesday. “He’s accepted responsibility. There was no money exchanged in this matter and he’s remorseful.”
Williams is currently scheduled for a sentencing of April 6, 2021.
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Source:https://www.law360.com/articles/1333503?sidebar
