Computer Hacker Admits Conspiring to Steal $150,000 : Cyberspace: Justin Peterson, alias ‘Agent Steal,’ tried to transfer money from Heller Financial. He also illegally possessed 40 passwords from various accounts.
Computer hacker Justin Tanner Peterson, who called himself “Agent Steal†and used his cyber skills to obtain Porsches, trips to Hawaii and other luxuries, pleaded guilty to two more computer crimes Monday in federal court in Los Angeles.
Peterson, who was handcuffed as he appeared before U.S. District Court Judge Judge Stephen V. Wilson, admitted he conspired to transfer $150,000 from Heller Financial in Glendale to the Union Bank account of an unidentified co-conspirator in Bellflower.
He also admitted illegally possessing 40 passwords from accounts at Heller Financial, TRW and America OnLine.
Assistant U.S. Atty. David Schindler said the conspirators, to cover up their crime, called in two phony bomb threats so that bank employees would evacuate the buildings at the time the money was transferred.
The tall, slender 34-year-old whose flowing hair and stylish manner of dress contrasted with the stereotype of the computer nerd, once worked as a promoter at after-hours clubs in Hollywood and the San Fernando Valley.
He first gained notoriety in hacker circles when he and Kevin Poulsen rigged telephone lines at three radio stations and won two Porsches, two giveaways for $20,000, one for $10,000, and at least two trips to Hawaii, the prosecutor said.
Peterson’s most recent crimes occurred between Oct. 22, 1993, and last Aug. 29, while authorities were searching for him. Peterson had skipped bail in the contest-rigging case, prosecutor Schindler said.
Peterson is scheduled to return to court June 5 for sentencing in both cases. Attorneys said that because federal sentencing guidelines are so complex in this case, they are uncertain how much time Peterson might actually face. But the charges carry statutory maximum sentences of 60 years in federal prison and $2 million in fines.
Defense attorney Morton H. Boren said the guilty pleas show Peterson is remorseful.
“Justin wants to get his life in order. He’s sorry for what he’s done,†said Boren. “Justin knows he’s been a bad boy.â€
Neither the prosecutor nor the defense attorney would comment Monday on Peterson’s previous claims that he had been helping the government catch other hackers when he disappeared.
Peterson was captured in August following a brief chase just two blocks from the FBI’s offices in West Los Angeles.
Sign up for Essential California
The most important California stories and recommendations in your inbox every morning.
You may occasionally receive promotional content from the Los Angeles Times.
