"Spam King" Arrested, Faces Fraud Charges
Robert Soloway could get as much as 65 years in prison if convicted
By: Rebecca Bottoms
Posted: 05/31/2007
SEATTLE -
Twenty-seven-year-old Robert Soloway, believed to be one of
the top 10 most-prolific spammers in the world, was arrested
Wednesday — a week after a federal grand jury indicted him on
35 counts ranging from mail fraud, wire fraud, email fraud,
identity theft, and money laundering. Federal authorities
said computer users worldwide could see less junk email in
their inboxes.
"Spam is a scourge of the Internet, and Robert Soloway is
one of its most prolific practitioners," U.S. Attorney for
the Western District of Washington Jeffrey Sullivan told the
Agence France-Presse. "Our investigators dubbed him the 'Spam
King' because he is responsible for millions of spam emails."
Soloway, who operates both the Newport Internet Marketing
Corp. and the Seattle-based Broadcast Email Service — which
allegedly sends emails only to "opt-in" addresses — pleaded
not guilty to all charges and could face as many as 65 years
in prison and a $250,000 fine if convicted.
"He's one of the top 10 spammers in the world," Tim Cranton,
a Microsoft Corp. lawyer who is senior director of
the company's Worldwide Internet Safety Programs, told
reporters. "He's a huge problem for our customers. This is a
very good day."
Prosecutors say since 2003, Soloway used "zombie" computers
— PCs infected with malware — to send out millions of junk
email. In 2005, both Microsoft and an Oklahoma-based ISP won
$7 million and $10 million civil judgments against Soloway,
respectively; however, nearly two years after those cases, he
continued to send spam.
Although Soloway told the arraigning judge he could not
afford a lawyer, according to The Associated Press, he has
been enjoying earnings of nearly $800,000 and living in "a
ritzy apartment and [driving] an expensive Mercedes
convertible," said prosecutor Kathryn Warma. Prosecutors are
seeking to have him forfeit $773,000 they claim Soloway made
from his business, according to the AP.
Soloway's public defender during Wednesday's hearing
declined to comment.
The case is the first in the U.S. in which federal
prosecutors have used identity theft statutes to prosecute a
spammer for seizing someone else's Internet domain name, the
AP reported.
Investigators began tracking Soloway after receiving
complaints about his practices, which led to his being placed
on a "watch list" by international anti-spam agency the Spamhaus
Project. Numerous individuals and organizations,
including the Department of Social Services in Santa Barbara
County, had complained of spam that appeared to be
originating from their computers.
According to authorities, Soloway used the networks of
infected computers to send out unsolicited bulk emails
"urging people to use his Internet marketing company to
advertise their products." Clicking on the embedded link
redirected to his website, where it was advertised that NIM
had the ability "to send out as many as 20 million email
advertisements over 15 days for $495," according to the
indictment.
Spamhaus, which has battled unsolicited bulk messages, said
the arrest of Soloway proves false his claims that his
activities did not violate the CAN-SPAM Act. "Soloway has
been a long-term nuisance on the Internet — both in terms of
the spam he sent, and the people he duped to use his spam
service," organizers wrote on Spamhaus.org.
A hearing is scheduled for Monday.
