Ukrainian citizen extradited to face charges in connection with $1.8 million fraud in North Carolina

CHARLOTTE, North Carolina – 49-year-old Ukrainian Viacheslav Alexandrovich Basovych has been extradited from Germany to face charges in the United States related to his alleged role in an international carding scheme. The U.S. Attorney for the Western District of North Carolina, Dena J. King, announced that Basovych has been charged with multiple federal charges, including wire fraud conspiracy, access device fraud and money laundering conspiracy.

Basovych was arrested in Germany on December 19, 2023, and extradited to the United States on August 8, 2024. His first court appearance took place today, following the unsealing of an indictment detailing his involvement in fraud from October 2013 to February 2022.

The indictment describes the scheme as an international operation in which Basovych and others allegedly stole personally identifiable information (PII) and financial data to make unauthorized transactions.

More than 148,000 fraudulent transactions totaling more than $1.8 million were reportedly conducted, with 5,100 of those transactions occurring in Charlotte using stolen payment card information.

The elaborate scheme involved small transactions of $7 to $15, likely to avoid detection, and used a network of money mules to launder money. U.S. Attorney King emphasized the global reach of justice in her statement, emphasizing coordinated efforts with international law enforcement to apprehend and prosecute those involved in cybercrimes, regardless of their location.

HARTFORD, Conn. – The United States Attorney’s Office said a federal grand jury in Hartford has indicted four Bridgeport men for their roles in a series of armed robberies.

The defendants are Elijah Raffington, 21, Rajonne Blake, also known as “Ray Ray,” 25, Shasson Daniels, 20, and Mickyeem Profit, 21.

The indictment, released under seal on July 11, 2024, and unsealed on August 1, 2024, following Blake’s arrest, details numerous incidents of armed robberies at retail stores and an Amazon delivery truck in late 2022 and early 2023. Notable incidents include the Dec. 15, 2022, robbery of Omega Deli in Bridgeport and the Dec. 21, 2022, robbery of Milford Convenience & Tobacco in Milford.

On Dec. 23, 2022, a group, including an unnamed individual, attacked an Amazon delivery truck and a tobacco store in Bridgeport. The series of robberies continued on Jan. 2, 2023, at Cumberland Farms in Stratford. Each defendant is charged under the Hobbs Act with disruption of commerce by robbery, which could result in a sentence of up to 20 years in prison for each charge.

In addition, Daniels and Profit are charged with carrying, using and brandishing a firearm during these crimes. Raffington and Blake are charged with aiding and abetting the same crimes, with potential sentences ranging from a mandatory minimum of seven years to life in prison.

All four men, who had been in state custody, were arraigned in federal court in New Haven, pleaded not guilty and were detained.

WASHINGTON, DC — Former President Donald Trump’s son, Donald Trump Jr., accused Vice President Kamala Harris of hijacking a key tax proposal from his father’s campaign platform, after the Trump campaign released a statement suggesting Harris had adopted a “No Tip Tax” proposal ahead of the 2024 presidential election.

This comes just days after her vice presidential candidate, Minnesota Governor Tim Walz, was criticized for claiming to have fought in the war, something he never did.

Walz is haunted by his claim that he carried a weapon of war during the war. His official Defense Department records show that he was never deployed to a combat zone. His closest combat experience was a brief stint as a National Guardsman in Italy.

In a tweet posted 34 minutes ago, Trump Jr. said Harris and her potential vice presidential running mate, Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, were guilty of “theft of a proposal and theft of valor.”

The tweet was in response to an earlier post from the official Trump campaign account on the War Room website, which accused Harris of political opportunism and said she had no intention of enacting the proposed tax.

Vice President Kamala Harris has entered the 2024 tax debate with a proposal that’s getting a lot of attention: eliminating federal tip taxes for service workers. What’s so strange about that? It’s disturbingly similar to a plan Donald Trump unveiled just months ago, sparking rumors that Harris might borrow a page from his playbook to woo working-class voters.

Critics are divided, with some calling it a smart move to attract service-sector workers, while others say it’s a blatant attempt to steal Trump’s spotlight. The debate is heating up as both candidates are vying for the same key base of voters.

The Trump campaign has highlighted the “No Tax on Tips” proposal as a key aspect of Trump’s economic agenda, aimed at easing the tax burden on service-sector workers. Harris’ campaign has not yet responded to the accusations.

The exchange of views took place during the intensified 2024 presidential campaign, during which both parties are analyzing each other’s programs and proposals.