x
Breaking News
More () »

Buffalo man charged in connection to Genesis Market takedown, accused of possessing stolen data

A 26-year-old Buffalo man has been charged in connection to the takedown of an international "criminal online marketplace."

BUFFALO, N.Y. — A 26-year-old Buffalo man has been charged in connection to the takedown of Genesis Market, a website used to buy and sell stolen account information.

The online marketplace was seized by federal officials this week as part of "Operation Cookie Monster" which involved 45 FBI field offices around the country including Buffalo, and some 20 countries.

According to a criminal complaint, Wul Isaac Chol is accused of "knowingly and with intent to defraud" possessing 788 stolen account credentials belonging to 21 people that were purchased on Genesis Market.

Federal prosecutors say from June 13, 2019, to May 10, 2022, Chol, under the username 'connectgcross' accessed Genesis 104 times and made his first purchase in Bitcoin via an account on the cryptocurrency exchange Coinbase.

FBI Cybercrimes Investigators were able to track several additional purchases linked to that same account. Those purchases included credentials from eBay, Amazon.co.uk, RyanAir, Airbnb, Facebook, Amazon, Instagram, Riot Games, Netflix, Comcast, AT&T, and numerous other websites.

That same Coinbase account, according to the criminal complaint, was also linked to transactions made on computers at the Erie County Public Library in June 2019.

In December 2022, Magistrate Judge for the Western District of New York Jeremiah McCarthy approved a search warrant for Chol's Facebook account.

As alleged in the complaint, investigators found conversations between Chol and another Facebook user, about using "gen" to obtain "joints," slang for bank accounts, "fullz," slang for stolen identities or credit card information, and "gitfys," slang for gift cards.

Chol has been released from custody but his travel and online activity have been restricted. He is scheduled to be back in federal court on July 12th.

On Wednesday, the Buffalo News was the first to report about a raid at a West Ferry Street home Tuesday by members of the Cyber Crimes Task Force in Buffalo. The raid was later confirmed via press release to be a part of the takedown of Genesis Market by the U.S. Justice Department.

It's unclear if Chol's arrest and the raid are directly related.

Before You Leave, Check This Out