Federal prosecutors charge three people in $129 million AI impersonation scheme

Federal prosecutors in the Southern District of New York charged Jacob Soall, 41, Sharon Hazan, 54, and Guy Sheetrit, 42, with money laundering, wire fraud, and aggravated identity theft in a scheme prosecutors say ran from 2024 to 2026 and used AI to impersonate company executives and lawyers to steal about $129 million.

Prosecutors allege the trio focused on accounting departments and staff able to approve large wire transfers. They sent messages claiming to come from a company chief executive and asked employees for help with a confidential financial transaction. The defendants then arranged phone or video calls using AI to mimic the voice and sometimes the image of the chief executive. Prosecutors say the defendants impersonated at least seven high-profile corporate executives worldwide.

During the calls, the defendants used AI to mimic the CEO’s voice and image to make the transaction seem real to the victim employee, prosecutors claim. Prosecutors state the fake business deals were a sham and the employees did not speak with the actual chief executive or lawyer.

Following the calls, the defendants told employees to contact a lawyer at a major law firm, someone the group was also prepared to impersonate. That fake attorney directed employees to transfer large sums to bank accounts around the world. The defendants converted the money into cryptocurrency to hide where it came from and then shared it among the three defendants and other participants.

The scheme ran for more than a year and a half and targeted thousands of companies across the world. Jacob Soall is from Spain and the United Kingdom. He mainly impersonated attorneys from the United Kingdom and used a handwritten script titled Lawyer Call to appear like a real attorney. Known victims included hospital systems in Missouri and California, a Rhode Island bank, a United Kingdom financial technology firm, a Massachusetts mutual fund company, and a Florida pet food company.

A United Kingdom financial technology company lost more than $11.5 million in March 2025, according to prosecutors. A Massachusetts mutual fund company lost more than $4.6 million in April 2025. Prosecutors accuse the group of stealing more than $5.2 million from a Florida pet food company in June 2025.

Sharon Hazan is from Israel, and Guy Sheetrit is from Israel and the United Arab Emirates. Prosecutors say Soall and Hazan were arrested in Spain in June and August, while Sheetrit was arrested in the United Kingdom in September. Extradition requests for all three defendants are pending.

In 2008, a New York court convicted Hazan of conspiracy to commit bank fraud. Counsel for Soall and Sheetrit did not quickly answer requests for comment, and it remained unknown whether Hazan had legal representation. A voicemail left for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York went unanswered. Online court records showed the case docket as sealed on Thursday evening.

Each defendant faces seven counts that include money laundering, wire fraud, and aggravated identity theft. If convicted, each charge carries up to 20 years, and aggravated identity theft carries a two-year sentence.

James C. Barnacle, Jr., the FBI Assistant Director in Charge, stated that advanced technology enables large-scale fraud, adding, “the FBI remains committed to rapidly adapting our capabilities.” Jamie McDonald, the U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York, said the defendants used advanced technology to trick corporate leaders by pretending to be real people. McDonald also urged individuals and businesses to consider protection from SI-enabled crime.

Hazan boasted that he was number one all over the world in professional money laundering. The trio have nicknames including Rocky Balboa, Superman Cash, and Fat Boy.

Earlier in 2026, a North Carolina man pleaded guilty in the same court to AI song fraud and bot streaming for more than $8 million in royalties. He received an 18-month prison term for a single count of conspiring to commit wire fraud.