The Brief
We are learning more details on a woman who is serving a prison sentence in connection with an IT worker scheme that involved North Korea.
Between October 2020 and 2023, Christina Marie Chapman is said to have helped North Korean IT workers secure stolen identities of U.S. citizens and residents. The stolen identities were reportedly used to get those North Korean workers get remote jobs with U.S. companies.
"This is a different type of fraud," said FBI Phoenix Special Agent In Charge Heith R. Janke.
LITCHFIELD PARK, Ariz. - We are learning more about an Arizona woman who stole millions to fund North Korea's nuclear program.
The backstory
On July 24, we reported on the sentencing of Christina Marie Chapman. The West Valley woman was given a 102-month prison sentence after she pleaded guilty in February to conspiracy to commit wire fraud, aggravated identity theft, and conspiracy to launder monetary instruments.
"In addition to the 102-month prison term, U.S. District Court Judge Randolph D. Moss ordered Chapman to serve three years of supervised release, to forfeit $284,555.92 that was to be paid to the North Koreans, and to pay a judgment of $176,850," read a portion of a statement released by the U.S. Department of Justice.
Dig deeper
"This is a different type of fraud," said FBI Phoenix Special Agent In Charge Heith R. Janke. "This is an income stream going back to the North Korean regime to fund their nuclear weapons program, which makes this that national security matter."
Between October 2020 and 2023, Chapman is said to have helped North Korean IT workers secure stolen identities of U.S. citizens and residents. The stolen identities were reportedly used to get those North Korean workers get remote jobs with U.S. companies. Chapman even hosted a so-called ‘laptop farm’ in her home, where she received and hosted the companies' computers, so the employees she was helping would appear to be in Arizona.
While Justice officials did not identify the companies impacted, they did say Fortune 500 corporations were among those affected.
"The impacted companies included a top-five major television network, a Silicon Valley technology company, an aerospace manufacturer, an American car maker, a luxury retail store, and a U.S media and entertainment company," read a portion of the statement.
"The companies thought they were hiring Americans. When they are looking at their logs and seeing the IP address of coming back to somewhere in the U.S., the system say that is right," said Janke.
More than 90 laptops were seized from Chapman's home.
What they're saying
"A lady in Litchfield Park, Arizona, could be running a laptop farm on behalf of the North Korean government. I think that is the first shocking, but it also shows that this can happen anywhere in the U.S.," said Janke.
Meanwhile, Chapman's now-former neighbors say the incident has made them think twice about who's next door.
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