U.S. authorities have unmasked and indicted the ringleader of LockBit, a prolific ransomware operation that has extorted victims out of half a billion dollars. He faces more than two dozen criminal counts. 

According to a 26-count indictment unsealed on Tuesday, Dmitry Khoroshev, 31, acted as LockBit’s “developer and administrator,” steering its code’s development and recruiting affiliates to deploy the ransomware against its victims. The alleged cybercriminal received 20% of each ransom payment for his role in the scheme, raking in $100 million in cryptocurrencies over roughly four years, the U.S. Justice Department said Tuesday in a statement. 

“Today’s indictment…continues the FBI’s ongoing disruption of the BlockBit criminal ecosystem,” FBI Director Christopher Wray said …