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class=\"single-article__category\"> <a class=\"single-article__category-link\" href=\"https:\/\/cyberscoop.com\/digitalmint-ransomware-negotiator-angelo-martino-guilty-plea\/\"> <span>Ransomware<\/span> <\/a> <\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p> Angelo Martino helped accomplices extort a combined $75.3 million in ransom payments from five victim companies. <\/p>\n<p>  <br \/>\n<audio id=\"audio-player\" src=\"https:\/\/wp-tts-cdn.api.scpnewsgrp.com\/cyberscoop\/88699\/english.openai.mp3\"><\/audio> <\/p>\n<div readability=\"11\">\n<div>\n<p>Listen to this article<\/p>\n<p>  <\/p>\n<p>0:00<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p>  <\/p>\n<p> <span id=\"tts-tooltip\">Learn more.<\/span> <span> This feature uses an automated voice, which may result in occasional errors in pronunciation, tone, or sentiment. <\/span> <\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p>  <\/div>\n<div class=\"single-article__cover-wrap\">\n<figure class=\"single-article__cover\"> <img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" fetchpriority=\"high\" width=\"640\" height=\"426\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/ddi.mohflo.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/former-digitalmint-ransomware-negotiator-pleads-guilty-to-extortion-scheme.jpg?resize=640%2C426&ssl=1\" class=\"single-article__cover-image wp-post-image\" alt decoding=\"async\" fetchpriority=\"high\" srcset=\"https:\/\/ddi.mohflo.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/former-digitalmint-ransomware-negotiator-pleads-guilty-to-extortion-scheme-2.jpg 2121w, https:\/\/ddi.mohflo.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/former-digitalmint-ransomware-negotiator-pleads-guilty-to-extortion-scheme-2.jpg?resize=300,200 300w, https:\/\/ddi.mohflo.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/former-digitalmint-ransomware-negotiator-pleads-guilty-to-extortion-scheme-2.jpg?resize=768,512 768w, https:\/\/ddi.mohflo.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/former-digitalmint-ransomware-negotiator-pleads-guilty-to-extortion-scheme-2.jpg?resize=1024,683 1024w, 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https:\/\/ddi.mohflo.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/former-digitalmint-ransomware-negotiator-pleads-guilty-to-extortion-scheme-2.jpg?resize=1265,843 1265w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1013px) 100vw, 1013px\"><figcaption> (Getty Images) <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/header>\n<div class=\"single-article__content\">\n<div class=\"single-article__content-inner has-drop-cap\"> <html readability=\"70.277668123502\"><body readability=\"144.29425358188\"><\/p>\n<p>A South Florida man <a href=\"https:\/\/www.justice.gov\/opa\/pr\/florida-man-working-ransomware-negotiator-pleads-guilty-conspiracy-deploy-ransomware-and\">pleaded guilty<\/a> to conspiring with multiple ransomware affiliates to commit attacks against and extort payments from the same U.S. companies he represented as a ransomware negotiator for DigitalMint in 2023, the Justice Department said Monday.<\/p>\n<p>Angelo John Martino III shared confidential information about victim organizations\u2019 internal negotiating positions and insurance policy limits he gained from his work as a ransomware negotiator to extract the maximum ransom payment for himself and other BlackCat affiliates, according to his plea agreement.<\/p>\n<p>Five of <a href=\"https:\/\/cyberscoop.com\/digitalmint-ransomware-negotiator-arrest-angelo-martino-extortion\/\">Martino\u2019s victims hired DigitalMint<\/a>, which assigned the 41-year-old to conduct ransomware negotiations on their clients\u2019 behalf \u2014 a rare position he exploited to play both sides. DigitalMint, which is not accused of any knowledge or involvement in the crimes, fired Martino the day after the Justice Department informed the company they were investigating him in April 2025. <\/p>\n<p>The five U.S.-based victims that hired DigitalMint and unwittingly tapped Martino to allegedly conduct ransomware negotiations with himself and his co-conspirators include a nonprofit and companies in the hospitality, financial services, retail and medical industries. All five of those victims paid a ransom.<\/p>\n<div class=\"ad ad--inline_1 \">\n<div class=\"ad__inner\"> <span class=\"screen-reader-text\">Advertisement<\/span> <\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>Prosecutors previously said Martino helped accomplices extort a combined $75.3 million in ransom payments, including a nearly $26.8 million payment from the unnamed nonprofit, and a nearly $25.7 million payment from the unnamed financial services company. <\/p>\n<p>Martino also admitted to conspiring with Kevin Tyler Martin, another former ransomware negotiator at DigitalMint, and Ryan Clifford Goldberg, a former manager of incident response at Sygnia, to deploy BlackCat ransomware, also known as ALPHV, against five additional U.S. companies between April and November 2023. <\/p>\n<p>Goldberg and Martin <a href=\"https:\/\/cyberscoop.com\/incident-responders-plead-guilty-ransomware-digitalmint\/\">pleaded guilty<\/a> in December to participating in a series of ransomware attacks and are scheduled for sentencing April 30.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAngelo Martino\u2019s clients trusted him to respond to ransomware threats and help thwart and remedy them on behalf of victims,\u201d A. Tysen Duva, assistant attorney general at the Justice Department\u2019s Criminal Division, said in a statement. \u201cInstead, he betrayed them and began launching ransomware attacks himself by assisting cybercriminals and harming victims, his own employer, and the cyber incident response industry itself.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The case against Martino showcases an extreme, albeit rare, example of <a href=\"https:\/\/cyberscoop.com\/ransomware-negotiation-pitfalls-moral-gray-zone\/\">the dark underbelly of ransomware negotiation<\/a> as a practice. The pitfalls of ransomware negotiation are excessive and these backchannel negotiations, which remain largely unscrutinized, can go awry for various reasons. <\/p>\n<div class=\"ad ad--inline_1 \">\n<div class=\"ad__inner\"> <span class=\"screen-reader-text\">Advertisement<\/span> <\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>Officials shared a series of chats Martino held with co-conspirators and his victims that exemplify the lengths he went to betray DigitalMint\u2019s clients and empower his accomplices with crucial tips for a successful negotiation strategy.<\/p>\n<p>DigitalMint did not respond to a request for comment on Martino\u2019s guilty plea.<\/p>\n<h4 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-negotiation-chats-exemplify-martino-s-crimes\">Negotiation chats exemplify Martino\u2019s crimes<\/h4>\n<p>During an incident response with one of his victims, Martino told a BlackCat affiliate the company\u2019s insurance carrier \u201cwas only approving small accounts,\u201d according to his plea agreement. \u201cKeep denying our offers and I will let you know once I find out the max the[y] want to pay,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe don\u2019t know how you came up with your demand but we are losing money operationally and all of our loans are going to turnover on us this year at double the interest rates,\u201d Martino said in a negotiation chat visible to DigitalMint and the victim organization in the hospitality industry. \u201cWe are able to give you $1 million now, which is a very serious offer.\u201d<\/p>\n<div class=\"ad ad--inline_1 \">\n<div class=\"ad__inner\"> <span class=\"screen-reader-text\">Advertisement<\/span> <\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>Following Martino\u2019s instructions, the BlackCat accomplice responded: \u201cWell, you can keep that for the penalties and lawsuits which are coming your way in case we expose you. Time is ticking \u2014 we know how much you can pay. Contact your insurance. We know about them also. Stop wasting time.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>That victim company ultimately paid a ransom worth nearly $16.5 million at the time to receive a decryptor and the BlackCat affiliate\u2019s commitment to not publish stolen data. The two other victims Martino represented via DigitalMint at the time paid $6.1 million and $213,000 ransoms for similar commitments.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cRansomware victims turned to this defendant for help, and he sold them out from the inside,\u201d Jason A. Reding Qui\u00f1ones, U.S. attorney for the Southern District of Florida, said in a statement.<\/p>\n<p>Martino received a portion of the ransomware payments for his involvement in the conspiracy.<\/p>\n<p>Authorities have seized $10 million in assets and cryptocurrency wallets controlled by Martino. Law enforcement seized multiple vehicles, a food truck and a 29-foot luxury fishing boat that he obtained using proceeds from his crimes.<\/p>\n<div class=\"ad ad--inline_1 \">\n<div class=\"ad__inner\"> <span class=\"screen-reader-text\">Advertisement<\/span> <\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>Officials also seized two properties owned by Martino in Nokomis, Florida, including a bayfront home with an estimated value of $1.68 million and a second single-family home with an estimated value of $396,000. <\/p>\n<p>Martino surrendered in March to the U.S. Marshals in Miami and was released on a $500,000 bond.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe FBI works every day to dismantle the ransomware ecosystem,\u201d Brett Leatherman, assistant director of the FBI\u2019s Cyber Division, said in a statement. \u201cThat includes apprehending key facilitators like Angelo Martino, who abused the trust placed in him as a private sector negotiator by collaborating with ransomware criminals.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>ALPHV\/BlackCat was a notorious ransomware and extortion group linked to a series of attacks on critical infrastructure providers. The ransomware variant first appeared in late 2021, and was later used in dozens of attacks on organizations in the health care sector.<\/p>\n<p>The group behind the ransomware strain also <a href=\"https:\/\/cyberscoop.com\/ransomware-alphv-healthcare-pharmacies\/\">claimed responsibility<\/a> for the February 2024 attack on UnitedHealth Group subsidiary Change Healthcare, which <a href=\"https:\/\/cyberscoop.com\/change-healthcare-attack-stolen-data-ransom-andrew-witty-unitedhealth\/\">paid a $22 million ransom<\/a> and became the largest health care data breach on record, compromising data on about 190 million people.<\/p>\n<div class=\"ad ad--inline_1 \">\n<div class=\"ad__inner\"> <span class=\"screen-reader-text\">Advertisement<\/span> <\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>Martino pleaded guilty to conspiracy to obstruct, delay or affect commerce or the movement of any article or commodity in commerce by extortion. He faces up to 20 years in federal prison and is scheduled for sentencing July 9.<\/p>\n<p>You can read Martino\u2019s plea agreement below.<\/p>\n<p> <\/body> <\/p>\n<footer class=\"single-article__footer\" readability=\"3.0249584026622\">\n<div class=\"author-card\" readability=\"14\">\n<div class=\"author-card__avatar\">\n<figure class=\"author-card__image-wrap\"> <img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"author-card__image\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/ddi.mohflo.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/former-digitalmint-ransomware-negotiator-pleads-guilty-to-extortion-scheme-1.jpg?w=640&ssl=1\" alt=\"Matt Kapko\"> <\/figure>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p><h4 class=\"author-card__name\">Written by Matt Kapko<\/h4>\n<p> Matt Kapko is a reporter at CyberScoop. His beat includes cybercrime, ransomware, software defects and vulnerability (mis)management. The lifelong Californian started his journalism career in 2001 with previous stops at Cybersecurity Dive, CIO, SDxCentral and RCR Wireless News. 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{"id":8566,"date":"2026-04-21T16:03:58","date_gmt":"2026-04-21T21:03:58","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/cyberscoop.com\/?p=88699"},"modified":"2026-04-21T16:03:58","modified_gmt":"2026-04-21T21:03:58","slug":"former-digitalmint-ransomware-negotiator-pleads-guilty-to-extortion-scheme","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/ddi.mohflo.net\/index.php\/2026\/04\/21\/former-digitalmint-ransomware-negotiator-pleads-guilty-to-extortion-scheme\/","title":{"rendered":"Former DigitalMint ransomware negotiator pleads guilty to extortion scheme"},"content":{"rendered":"