Chilean National Extradited to U.S. to Face Financial Fraud Crimes in the District of Utah

SALT LAKE CITY, Utah – A Chilean national extradited from Chile to the United States on February 25, 2026, was arraigned in court today to face charges that he trafficked tens of thousands of stolen credit card numbers and information.

Alex Rodrigo Valenzuela Monje, aka “VAL4K,” 24, of Chile, was charged in a sealed indictment by a federal grand jury in Salt Lake City on August 8, 2023. The United States submitted an extradition request to Chile, which the Chilean Supreme Court initially approved on April 22, 2025. After various appeals before the Supreme Court of Chile, Valenzuela Monje was arrested on the extradition request from the United States on January 14, 2026. Valenzuela is charged with trafficking in unauthorized access devices, and unlawful transfer of means of identification to facilitate criminal conduct. Valenzuela Monje entered a not-guilty plea to both counts of the indictment against him.

According to the allegations in court documents, from at least May 2021 to August 2023, Valenzuela Monje operated an illegal online card shop, selling dumps of unauthorized access devices through Telegram channels. He allegedly operated the channels known as MacacoCC Collective and Novato Carding, offering payment card data for virtually all U.S. payment cards. Under one credit card brand alone, Valenzuela Monje trafficked the stolen numbers and information for approximately 26,528 cards. Valenzuela often provided the account number, card type, account holder name, card verification value (“CVV” or CVC”), and expiration date.

“I want to thank our federal partners for their dedication in investigating individuals in foreign countries who use the internet to commit crimes against our citizens,” said U.S. Attorney Melissa Holyoak of the District of Utah. “Individuals may believe they can hide behind foreign borders, but the United States is committed to investigating and prosecuting these cybercrimes targeting Americans.”

“This extradition sends a clear message to cybercriminals everywhere that geography will not shield you from accountability,” said Special Agent in Charge Robert Bohls of the Salt Lake City FBI. “Even when operating from abroad, those who exploit technology to victimize American companies and citizens will be identified, located, and brought to justice. Our international partnerships, alongside our work with the Utah Department of Public Safety, remain among the FBI's most powerful tools in targeting and dismantling cyber threats."

Valenzuela Monje’s next court appearance is scheduled for May 4, 2026, at 8:30 a.m. in courtroom 3.4 before Senior U.S. District Court Judge Dale A. Kimball at the Orrin G. Hatch U.S. District Courthouse in downtown Salt Lake City.

The case is being investigated by the FBI Salt Lake City Field Office with special assistance provided by foreign legal authorities from the National Prosecutor’s Office (Fiscalía Nacional) of Chile, Policía de Investigaciones (PDI), FBI's Law Enforcement Attache office in Santiago, Chile, FBI Miami, and U.S. Customs and Border Protection. The Department of Justice’s Office of International Affairs worked closely with Chilean counterparts, the Fiscalía Nacional Unidad Especializada en Cooperación Internacional y Extradiciones (UCIEX), to secure the arrest and extradition of Valenzuela Monje. The extradition was carried out by the FBI, Utah State Bureau of Investigation, and the Salt Lake City Police Department.

Assistant United States Attorney Carl LeSueur of the United States Attorney’s Office for the District of Utah is prosecuting the case.

An indictment is merely an allegation and all defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law. 
 

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