Former ransomware negotiator sentenced to 70 months for extortion conspiracy

Angelo Martino, 41, of Land O'Lakes, Florida, was sentenced to 70 months in federal prison on the date of this report for conspiring with ransomware actors to extort five U.S.-based victims out of a combined $75.3 million.

Martino had worked as a ransomware negotiator for a company called DigitalMint. The U.S. Department of Justice said he exploited that insider position to pass confidential client information to ransomware co-conspirators, including members of the Blackcat/ALPHV group. He also conspired with former cybersecurity professionals to target additional victims in 2023.

CyberScoop reported that the five victims were all based in the United States and that the $75.3 million total reflects the combined extortion payments across all five cases.

TechCrunch noted that Martino is the third ransomware negotiator to be jailed for helping a ransomware group extort American companies.