- The U.S. Department of Justice indicted 54 individuals linked to the Venezuelan gang Tren de Aragua for a multi-million dollar ATM jackpotting scheme.
- The group used Malware called Ploutus to hack ATMs nationwide, forcing them to dispense cash.
- The indicted members face charges including bank fraud, burglary, computer fraud, and money laundering with penalties up to 335 years in prison.
- Since 2021, over 1,500 jackpotting incidents in the U.S. are attributed to this network, with losses exceeding $40 million.
- Proceeds from the scheme allegedly supported terrorist and other criminal activities led by Tren de Aragua.
This week, the U.S. Department of Justice announced the indictment of 54 people involved in a large-scale ATM jackpotting operation across the United States. Members of the Venezuelan gang Tren de Aragua, classified as a foreign terrorist organization, are accused of deploying malware called Ploutus to force ATMs to dispense cash illegally.
The indictments returned in October and December 2025 charge the suspects with crimes such as bank fraud, burglary, computer fraud, and money laundering. If convicted, defendants face penalties ranging from 20 to 335 years in prison. The Justice Department reported that the group used the stolen funds to support its terrorist and criminal enterprises.
Tren de Aragua leaders, including head Hector Rusthenford Guerrero Flores, were sanctioned by the U.S. government in July 2025 for involvement in drug trafficking, extortion, human smuggling, sexual exploitation, and money laundering, among other offenses. The jackpotting scheme contributed millions of dollars to their operations.
The Ploutus malware enables attackers to control ATMs by issuing commands to the Cash Dispensing Module, allowing unauthorized cash withdrawals. The group recruited individuals to install the malware after assessing ATM security and avoiding alarms. Installation involved replacing hard drives or connecting thumb drives with preloaded malware designed to erase traces, according to the Department of Justice announcement.
First identified in Mexico in 2013, Ploutus exploits vulnerabilities in Windows-based ATMs to facilitate cash theft after physical access by money mules, requiring a master key and activation code, as detailed by Google Mandiant.
Since 2021, 1,529 jackpotting incidents have been reported in the U.S., causing losses of about $40.7 million. U.S. Attorney Lesley Woods stated, “Many millions of dollars were drained from ATM machines across the United States as a result of this conspiracy, and that money is alleged to have gone to Tren de Aragua leaders to fund their terrorist activities and purposes.”
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