The indictment said members of the hacking scheme, including Mr. Abayev and Mr. Leyman, began exploring ways to gain access to the dispatch system in 2019. In the end, they succeeded. and can move specific cabs to the front of the line, ahead of those that have come before.
The indictment said the defendants communicated with the drivers through large group chat threads, adding that when the masterminds gained access to the system on a specific date, a message will be sent: “The store is open”. When the hacker’s access is interrupted, another message will appear: “The store is closed.”
As the indictment describes the scheme, drivers paid the $10 fee in cash or through a mobile payment system. Sometimes the fee is waived if the driver agrees to hire another taxi driver. To take advantage of this mechanism, outreach drivers send their taxi medallion numbers to group chat threads and are told which terminal to go to to collect money.
In early December 2019, just a few months after the scheme began, the indictment said, Abayev sent a voice message to one of the Russian hackers, saying they had charged him for the quantity. record trip on that day.
“This is exactly the level that I want to reach every day,” Mr. Abayev said.
The indictment said Mr. Abayev and Mr. Leyman transferred more than $100,000 of their criminal proceeds to hackers in Russia.
Mr. Abayev also repeatedly sent messages to large groups of drivers involved in this ring instructing them on how to avoid detection by law enforcement.
“Dear drivers!!!! PLEASE !!!! Don’t wait at the gas station at JFK,” the notice said, listing other locations motorists should also not wait. Drivers should be “very very” careful, the message warned, ending with two police officer emojis.
