Arizona Woman Sentenced to 8 Years for Orchestrating $17 million North Korean Remote Work Scam

Arizona woman helped North Korean operatives land US remote tech jobs, laundering millions through a home-based "laptop farm."

Cybercrime unveiled in the suburbs

Authorities sentenced an Arizona resident to over eight years in prison after discovering a covert "laptop farm" connected to a remote work scam involving North Korean IT operatives masquerading as American remote workers.

The case, which spanned three years, is one of the largest of its kind involving state-sponsored fraud linked to the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea.

Christina Marie Chapman, 50, helped threat actors funnel millions in illicit income to North Korea by supporting dozens of fraudulent job applicants. She provided the hardware and US-based IP access that let foreign nationals land remote tech roles at hundreds of unsuspecting US firms.

Exploiting loopholes in remote work

From 2020 to 2023, Chapman helped disguise the foreign origins of workers by hosting their laptops and rerouting equipment overseas. Authorities later seized over 90 devices from her residence, discovering a sophisticated setup meant to deceive corporate and government systems.

The operation gave rogue workers a foothold in major US companies in multiple industries, including aerospace, tech and media, and even government agencies. Although the federal government detected and blocked some infiltration attempts, the scam still caused widespread damage.

Funds funneled to the DPRK

Chapman even handled payroll logistics for the fake hires by receiving checks mailed to her residence and depositing them into US accounts under her control. She used multiple channels to launder the funds, then redirected them to North Korea, potentially supporting the regime’s weapons development programs.

Court records show the fraud totaled $17 million, with $284,555.92 slated for transfer to North Korean recipients at the time of Chapman’s arrest. She pleaded guilty in February 2025 to conspiracy to commit wire fraud, aggravated identity theft, and conspiracy to launder monetary instruments.

In addition to her 102-month sentence, Chapman was ordered to forfeit seized funds and pay an additional $176,850 judgment. She will remain under supervised release for three years following her incarceration.

"The call is coming from inside the house"

Regarding the incident, US Attorney Jeanine Pirro warned that "the call is coming from inside the house," stressing that no US company is immune to this kind of deceit.

"If this happened to Fortune 500 companies and federal agencies, it can happen to yours." She emphasized that corporate failure to verify remote employees continues to present a significant national security risk.

The FBI issued updated guidelines on Wednesday, urging businesses to enhance identity verification, monitor device locations, and hold interviews live whenever possible.