Theft/Property — Chicago, IL — reported 2026-07-01

SUMMARY

A 19-year-old man was charged with conspiracy and fraud for his alleged involvement in a hacking group that committed network intrusions resulting in over $100 million in ransom payments.

KEY FACTS

  • Incident type: Theft/Property
  • Location: Chicago, IL
  • Date reported: 2026-07-01
  • Suspect: male, age 19
  • Status: arrest/charge

REPORTED DETAILS

  • Peter Stokes, 19, was arrested and charged with conspiracy, cyber intrusion, and fraud.
  • Stokes is accused of being a member of the 'Scattered Spider' hacking group.
  • The group allegedly targeted U.S. corporations by accessing their employee accounts, encrypting their data or moving it to remote servers, and demanding cryptocurrency in exchange for returning control of that data.
  • Stokes is specifically charged in connection with a May 2025 intrusion targeting a luxury jewelry retailer.
  • The ransom demand was approximately $8 million in cryptocurrency, but the company's security successfully booted the intruders from their network and no payment was made.