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Press Release

Man Charged With Computer Hacking And Credit Card Theft

For Immediate Release
U.S. Attorney's Office, District of Massachusetts
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BOSTON – A New Bedford man was charged today with hacking into computer networks around the country – including networks belonging to law enforcement agencies, a local police department and a local college – and obtaining highly sensitive law enforcement data and altering academic records. He also obtained stolen credit, debit and payment card numbers.

Cameron Lacroix, 25, was charged with two counts of computer intrusion and one count of access device fraud. Lacroix has agreed to plead guilty. If the plea agreement is accepted by the court, Lacroix will be sentenced to four years in prison to be followed by three years of supervised release.

It is alleged that, between September 2012 and November 2013, Lacroix who was enrolled as a student at Bristol Community College (BCC), repeatedly hacked into BCC’s computer servers and used stolen log-in credentials belonging to three instructors, to log into the web-based grade recording system, where he changed course grades for himself and two other BCC students.

In addition, in September 2012, Lacroix allegedly hacked into a computer server operated by a local Massachusetts police department and accessed an e-mail account belonging to the chief of police. From August 2012 through November 2013, Lacroix is accused of repeatedly hacking into law enforcement computer servers containing sensitive information including police reports, intelligence reports, arrest warrants, and sex offender information.

It is further alleged that between May 2011 and May 2013, Lacroix obtained and possessed payment card data for more than 14,000 unique account holders. For some of these account holders, Lacroix also obtained other personally identifiable information, such as the account holders’ full names, addresses, dates of births, social security account numbers, email addresses, bank account and routing numbers, as well as listings of merchandise the account holders had ordered.

United States Attorney Carmen M. Ortiz; Assistant Attorney General Leslie R. Caldwell of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division; Vincent Lisi, Special Agent in Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s Boston Division; and Colonel Timothy P. Alben, Superintendent of the Massachusetts State Police made the announcement.

The case was investigated by the FBI Boston Division Cyber Task Force. The U.S. Attorney’s Office would also like to acknowledge the cooperation and assistance of Bristol Community College.

The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Adam Bookbinder, Chief of Ortiz’s Cyber Crime’s Unit and Senior Trial Attorney Mona Sedky from the Criminal Division’s Computer Crime and Intellectual Property Section.


Updated December 15, 2014