When Anthony Murgio and Josh Aaron ran the place, the Phi Kappa Sigma house a block from Florida State University’s Tallahassee campus was a hive of digital moneymaking. Led by Murgio (chapter president) and Aaron (secretary), dozens of fraternity brothers paid their way through school writing Google ads that persuaded people to click links for everything from dating websites to electronics. Working in shifts, the brothers brought in thousands of dollars a month in commissions. For Murgio and Aaron, college life was an education in making fast cash online.
Federal prosecutors say the 31-year-olds have since used their skills unlawfully. In indictments unsealed on July 21, Murgio is accused of running a Bitcoin exchange that laundered money for hackers. Aaron is accused of a pump-and-dump scam that used expertly crafted spam emails to lure investors into worthless penny stock purchases, generating $2.8 million in illicit profits. Although those indictments don’t involve hacking, an FBI memo reviewed by Bloomberg also links the two men to last summer’s cyberattack on JPMorgan Chase, one of the largest bank hacks in U.S. history.
