A man known only as Pornopoker was arrested in Russia under suspicion of distributing ransomware.
The suspect was nabbed at Domodedovo International Airport outside Moscow as he arrived with his wife from Thailand, where police believed they were in hiding.
While his name has not yet been revealed, Russian officials said he was 40-years-old and a resident of Volgograd.
According to a statement from Russia's Ministry of Internal Affairs – a branch of the government that, among other duties, investigates economic crimes – the suspect created scripts that caused pop-ups purporting to be messages from Russian police. The messages claimed the computer had been blocked for viewing pornography and demanded a ransom be paid to regain normal use of the device.
Upon arrest the detainee confessed and voluntarily surrendered computer equipment, SIM cards and bank cards "used in illegal activities," according to the statement. Pornopoker has been placed under house arrest.
Another suspect, believed to be an accomplice, was previously arrested.
