One of 3 N Koreans charged by US linked to reserve heist

One of the three North Koreans – charged in the United States (US) over a scheme to steal and extort over $1.3 billion from banks and other targets – has reportedly been involved in the 2016 theft of $81 million from the Bangladesh Bank.

The US Justice Department on Wednesday formally announced charges against the three, including Park Jin Hyok. They all are on the run.

Park Jin Hyok was also charged with the 2014 hack of Sony pictures, the creation of the notorious WannaCry ransomware.

All three men are believed to be in North Korea, which does not extradite its citizens to face US charges, reported BBC.

The Canadian-American man, 37-year-old Ghaleb Alaumary, from Mississauga, Ontario, is accused of being the group's money launderer in a separate case announced on Wednesday. Officials say he has agreed to plead guilty to the charge.

In February 2016, the Bangladesh Bank faced biggest cyber heist which took away $81 million from its foreign exchange reserve account with the Federal Reserve Bank of New York. An investigation found the involvement of North Korea based hacker group with this heist.

When contacted, Mustafa Kamal, special superintendent of Criminal Investigation Department's (CID) organised crime unit, told The Business Standard that the US charged three North Korean, one of them was involved in Bangladesh Bank heist.

"The federal court in Los Angeles identified the hacker as Park Jin Hyok. We learned about it through the media. The CID is investigating the matter about his involvement," he added.

"We are waiting to know the outcome of a case, which was filed with the federal court in Los Angeles. The CID has prepared the charge sheet against 40 nationals of six countries, including of Bangladesh," Mustafa said.

According to CID official sources, the investigation into the case over the reserve heist is almost done.