Thaindian News

Washington, June 25 (ANI): A Santa Ana man, who hacked into hundreds of computers to extort victims into making sexually explicit digital videos for him, and to steal their credit card numbers, has been arrested.

Luis Mijangos, 31, allegedly tricked 230 people — including 44 children — into downloading a virus that allowed him to take over their personal computers, myFOXla.com reported.

The FBI said Mijangos looked for sexually explicit pictures of computer owners, then used threats to email those files to victims’ mailing lists to coerce them to send him more homemade digital pornography.

According to FBI agent Laura Eimiller, Mijangos was arrested at his house by the FBI, charged with extortion, and brought in his wheelchair to federal court in Los Angeles to make his first court appearance.

Thom Mrozek, spokesman for the U.S. Attorney’s Office, said bail was set at 10,000 dollars, but he cannot be released because he is suspected of being an illegal immigrant and is being held without possible bail for Immigration and Customs Enforcement hearings.

Eimiller revealed that a six-month investigation of Mijangos began when one of his alleged victims went to Glendale police for help.

Mrozek said agents discovered that Mijangos infected more than 100 computers used by about 230 people, and that at least 44 of the victims were minors.

Mijangos accessed the computers through peer-to-peer networks by tricking victims to download malware that appeared to be popular songs. The malware allowed Mijangos to take control of the computers.

In some cases, he would search through the data on the computers to find explicit photos or videos of his victims, then he would blackmail the victims to make more pornographic videos for him, threatening to send the stolen intimate photos or videos to everyone on their e-mail list.

Mijangos stole user names and passwords to hack into e-mail and social networking sites. One alleged scheme involved Mijangos hacking into e-mail accounts so he could pretend to be the boyfriends of women and teenage girls to ask them to make pornographic videos.

After he received the videos he would contact the victims under a new alias and demand more sexually explicit videos or he would distribute the homemade porn online.

Mijangos is also accused of remotely accessing personal computer webcams, which he used to spy on people and catch them in “intimate situations”.

He is also accused of installing a “keylogger” on the computers of some victims to steal their credit card numbers and other personal identifying information he could use for identity theft, according to the criminal complaint against him.

Mrozek said, he allegedly told FBI agents that he hacked into computers at the request of boyfriends and husbands who wanted to know if their partners were cheating on them.

Mijangos also allegedly told investigators he was part of an international network of hackers.

He is expected to next appear in federal court in Los Angeles July 13 for a preliminary hearing. Arraignment is set for July 19. (ANI)