NEW YORK (1010 WINS) — Two Queens men were arrested for conspiring with Russian nationals to hack the taxi dispatch system at John F. Kennedy Airport to move drivers to the front of the pick-up line in exchange for cash, prosecutors said Tuesday.
The 48-year-old men, Daniel Abayev and Peter Leymen, were charged with two counts of conspiracy to commit computer intrusions each for electronically hacking the taxi dispatch system at JFK.
Taxi drivers who want to pick up passengers at JFK are required to wait in a holding lot before dispatched to a specific terminal by the system. The drivers are called to a terminal in the order they arrive to the lot, which means they often wait several hours before being dispatched. Abayev and Leymen hatched a plan to get drivers who paid a $10 fee to the front of the lines, according to court documents.
From about Sept. 2019 to Sept. 2021, the men tried various means of getting into the dispatch system. This included bribing someone to insert a flash drive containing malware into computers connected to the dispatch system, obtaining unauthorized access via a Wi-Fi connection and stealing computer tablets connected to the system, officials said.
The men also sent messages between each other and Russian nationals explicitly discussing their plan. One example is from Nov. 10, 2019 when Abayev texted “I know that the Pentagon is being hacked[.]. So, can’t we hack the taxi industry[?]” to a Russian hacker, according to authorities.
Abayev and Leymen were able to successfully get into the dispatch system multiple times between Nov. 2019 and Nov. 2020 where they were able to move taxis to the front of the line for $10. Sometimes the men would waive the $10 fee if the drivers recruited other drivers to the scheme, prosecutors said.
Over the course of the scheme, the men were allegedly able to enable as many as 1,000 line skips a day.
“This sophisticated, internationally coordinated conspiracy allegedly targeted hard-working taxi drivers trying to earn an honest living,” Port Authority Inspector General John Gay said. “The Port Authority has zero tolerance for bad actors violating the law at our facilities. We thank Damian Williams and the Southern District for their partnership as we continue our relentless commitment to detecting and disrupting illegal behavior at our facilities across the region.”
Both Abayev and Leymen face a maximum of 10 years in prison if convicted.
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