Ransomware dealer jailed for 70 months after he just helped infect victims with malware

Ransomware dealer Angelo Martino to serve 70 months in prison for secretly helping BlackCat (ALPHV) attackers
Martino loses crypto proceeds, houses, cars and boats and must pay 10% of future salary after release
Martino was the third dealer revealed; his co-conspirators Ryan Clifford Goldberg and Kevin Tyler Martin previously received four years in prison for similar insider cooperation

A ransomware dealer who worked with the attackers behind his clients’ backs has been sentenced to nearly six years in prison.

A sentencing memo published by the US government said 41-year-old Angelo Martino will spend the next 70 months in prison and will also forfeit all the cryptocurrency the attackers paid him to share insider information, as well as all the houses, cars and boats he had bought with that money.

He must also pay 10% of any wages he earns after his release.

Asking for a shorter sentence

In November 2025, it was reported that three men who worked as ransomware dealers to help victims minimize the damage from these attacks were actually agents of the dreaded BlackCat (ALPHV) ransomware collective.

Over the next few months, it was reported that the men — Ryan Clifford Goldberg of Georgia, Kevin Tyler Martin of Texas, and Angelo Martino of Land O’Lakes, Florida — not only failed to help their victims, but actually infected some of them with ransomware and later shared valuable insider information with other BlackCat affiliates to maximize payouts.

Their victims included at least five companies: a medical device company from Florida (demanded $10 million in ransom, ended up paying about $1.2 million), a pharmaceutical company from Maryland, a medical office and engineering company in California, and a drone manufacturer based in Virginia.

While all three faced serious prison terms (between 10 and 20 years), they received far less. Martin and Goldberg were each sentenced to four years in prison in April 2026, while Martino will spend five years and ten months behind bars. Martino pleaded guilty and asked for a 24-month sentence, saying he “provided substantial assistance contributing to the prosecution and conviction of two co-defendants.” It didn’t work.

Via Ars Technica