The U.S. State Department is offering $5 million for information leading to the arrest or conviction of an alleged key distributor for Anom, an encrypted phone company the FBI secretly managed in order to wiretap thousands of criminals globally. Many underground phone sellers sold Anom devices without knowing the company was actually an FBI plot. This allegedly includes Maximilian Rivkin, the Swedish gangster the State Department is targeting.
The announcement comes on the two year anniversary of the FBI and its European and Australian partners going public about the Anom operation. Beginning in 2018, authorities kept Anom’s secret underwraps, even from the company’s own hired developers.
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“Specifically, Rivkin was administrator and influencer of an encrypted communication service used by criminals worldwide. His communications on the platform implicated him in several nefarious activities, including his alleged participation in drug trafficking, money laundering, murder conspiracy and other violent acts,” the State Department’s announcement reads.
Do you know anything else about Maximilian Rivkin? Did you use or work for Anom? We’d love to hear from you. Using a non-work phone or computer, you can contact Joseph Cox securely on Signal on +44 20 8133 5190, Wickr on josephcox, or email joseph.cox@vice.com.
U.S. authorities unsealed charges against Rivkin and 16 other people in June 2021 for allegedly working for the Anom enterprise. The State Department announcement said it was being made in conjunction with the Swedish Police Authority. In Sweden, Rivkin is wanted on additional drug trafficking charges.
Rivkin allegedly sits in the upper echelons of the Anom enterprise. Hakan Ayik, a high profile drug trafficker, was allegedly key to Anom’s expansion and is based in Turkey, according to court records. Domenico Catanzariti, another key member, was previously arrested in Australia and is facing drug trafficking charges there. Rivkin, meanwhile, remains free, his current location unknown, although the June 2021 indictment said he was based in Turkey.
The U.S. has finally extradited multiple alleged Anom sellers in the past few months. Seyyed Hossein Hosseini arrived in the U.S. recently, according to court records. Australian media reported Edwin Kumar’s extradition from the country in April. Australian media also reported Osemah Elhassen, a Sydney man arrested in Colombia, was extradited recently.
They join Aurangzeb Ayub, who Motherboard reported arrived in the U.S. last year, and Alexander Dmitrienko who Motherboard reported was extradited in February.
Motherboard previously published an analysis of the Anom app code and obtained one of the Anom phones. In all, Anom grew to 12,000 devices in over 100 countries and impacted more than 300 criminal organizations, according to the Department of Justice.
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