A woman from Arizona, Christina Chapman, received an eight-year prison sentence due to involvement in a remote IT worker scam that generated over $17 million in illicit revenue purportedly intended for North Korea’s nuclear weapons program.

Chapman had pleaded guilty to charges including conspiracy to commit wire fraud and aggravated identity theft, using stolen identities and a total of 90 laptops to help North Koreans impersonate U.S. citizens and secure remote IT positions.

According to Rozhavsky, Assistant Director of the FBI’s Counterintelligence Division, the operation was designed to siphon funds towards the nuclear program. The laptops were seized back in October 2023 during investigations into the scheme.

Chapman’s actions are a stark reminder of how remote work can sometimes mask nefarious activities.