Three men charged in US over AI voice and image impersonation of CEOs and lawyers in fraud scheme stealing more than $129m

The US Attorney's office for the Southern District of New York unsealed an indictment against Jacob Soall, Sharon Hazan and Guy Sheetrit. They face charges of conspiracy to commit wire fraud, money-laundering conspiracy and aggravated identity theft. Prosecutors allege that between 2024 and 2026 the men used AI to alter the voices and images of executives and lawyers, which persuaded employees to wire payments. The DoJ says more than $129m was taken from companies worldwide and laundered through cryptocurrency. Soall and Hazan were arrested in Spain over the summer and Sheetrit in the UK in September. These are allegations, not convictions.

Finance, legal and executive-assistant teams now have a large, documented example of voice and image impersonation being used to move real money, which makes the case easier to use when arguing for payment controls. The practical response is dull but effective: call-back verification on a known number, dual approval for transfers, and no payment changes on the strength of a voice or video alone. The case does not show a new capability. Impersonation fraud was already a recognised threat, so this adds scale and a prosecution rather than a new kind of risk. International arrests suggest cross-border cooperation worked here, but one case says little about how often it will.

The official quotes about criminals "weaponizing" emerging technology and the FBI "adapting" are boilerplate and carry no information about new capability or policy. The $129m figure is the prosecution's claim, and coverage gives no breakdown of how much came from AI-assisted deception versus ordinary fraud and laundering. It is also unclear how many victims there were or how convincing the fakes were, and the article does not link the primary indictment or press release.

1. 01Publication of the full indictment or DoJ press release, to check how central AI-altered voice and images are to each count and how the $129m is split across victims.
2. 02Plea deals, extradition rulings and trial dates for the three defendants, including any court findings on the evidence that AI was used.
3. 03Whether other prosecutors, regulators or banks cite this case in new guidance or rules on payment verification, or whether similar indictments follow in the next 6 to 12 months.