Former DigitalMint Ransomware Negotiator Sentenced for Defrauding Clients
Angelo John Martino III, a former ransomware negotiator for DigitalMint, has been sentenced to 70 months in prison for defrauding clients and conspiring with BlackCat ransomware affiliates.
Angelo John Martino III, a former ransomware negotiator for DigitalMint, has been sentenced to 70 months in jail for deceiving his employer’s clients and conspiring with ransomware affiliates to extort a combined $75.3 million from five U.S. companies he was entrusted to aid during their moments of extreme crisis. Martino exploited confidential information gained from his role, including victim organizations’ negotiating positions and insurance policy limits, to maximize payments for himself and other BlackCat affiliates he colluded with in backchannels.
Martino, 41, was assigned by DigitalMint to conduct ransomware negotiations on behalf of five clients who had hired the company. He effectively played both sides, conducting negotiations with himself and his co-conspirators. These five victims, all of whom paid ransoms between April 2023 and September 2023, included a nonprofit that paid nearly $26.8 million, a financial services company that paid nearly $25.7 million, and a hospitality company that paid almost $16.5 million. DigitalMint hired Martino in 2022, after he had already engaged in criminal activity, according to court records.
Martino surrendered to U.S. Marshals in March, was released on a $500,000 bond, and pleaded guilty in April to conspiracy to obstruct, delay or affect commerce or the movement of any article or commodity in commerce by extortion. He faced up to 20 years in prison. He also admitted to conspiring with Kevin Tyler Martin, another former ransomware negotiator at DigitalMint, and Ryan Clifford Goldberg, a former manager of incident response at Sygnia, to deploy BlackCat ransomware, also known as ALPHV, against five additional U.S. companies between April and November 2023.
Goldberg, Martin, and Martino split proceeds from a nearly $1.3 million ransom payment they received from a medical company in May 2023. However, they did not successfully extort a financial payment from the other four victims. Goldberg and Martin pleaded guilty in December to participating in a series of ransomware attacks and were each sentenced in April to four years in prison.
DigitalMint maintains it had no knowledge of Martino's criminal acts, stating, "The actions of Martino and his co-conspirators were deliberately concealed from DigitalMint and were in clear violation of the company’s values, ethical standards and the law." A company spokesperson added that Martino was immediately terminated and his access suspended when the Justice Department notified the company of its investigation in April 2025. DigitalMint also stated that Martino intentionally hid his conduct, using separate, unauthorized communication channels.
Prosecutors described Martino as a 'double agent' driven by greed. He obtained an ALPHV affiliate account that he shared with co-conspirators and received a portion of ransomware payments. Authorities have seized approximately $10 million in assets from Martino, including multiple properties, cryptocurrency wallets, vehicles, a food truck, and a luxury fishing boat.
Court records reveal chat logs where Martino provided crucial tips to BlackCat affiliates regarding victim negotiation strategies. For instance, during an incident response with one victim, Martino informed a BlackCat affiliate that the company's insurance carrier "was only approving small accounts." He added, "Keep denying our offers and I will let you know once I find out the max they want to pay."
This case highlights an extreme, albeit rare, example of the inherent risks and potential for abuse within the ransomware negotiation industry. The backchannel negotiations, often unscrutinized, can lead to severe consequences when individuals like Martino betray trust for personal gain, demonstrating the dark underbelly of this practice.
The article provides further details on the sentencing of Angelo Martino, who received 70 months in prison for his role in BlackCat ransomware attacks. It specifies that Martino, along with accomplices Kevin Tyler Martin and Ryan Clifford Goldberg, acted as ransomware negotiators, demanding ransom payments and threatening data leaks before encrypting systems. Martino also shared confidential victim information with BlackCat operators to maximize extortion amounts.
The sentencing of Angelo Martino, a former ransomware negotiator, for his role in the BlackCat/ALPHV ransomware operation adds further detail to the ongoing legal repercussions for the group. Martino's specific contribution involved leveraging his insider access to client information to aid attackers, providing them with negotiation strategies and financial data, which directly facilitated higher ransom demands and successful extortion against at least one victim for approximately $1 million in Bitcoin.
The sentencing of Angelo Martino to 70 months in prison marks a significant legal development in the fight against ransomware. Beyond his role as a negotiator who betrayed victims by sharing confidential information with BlackCat operators, Martino also collaborated with two other cybersecurity professionals to actively deploy the ransomware against new targets in 2023. This expanded scope of his involvement, including direct participation in attacks alongside former colleagues from DigitalMint and incident response firms, underscores the multifaceted nature of his criminal enterprise and the severity of his betrayal.
Angelo Martino, a former ransomware negotiator, has been sentenced to 70 months in prison for his role in assisting the BlackCat/Alphv ransomware group. Martino was paid by BlackCat to provide confidential information about his employer's clients to help the ransomware actors maximize their extorted ransoms. Authorities seized over $10 million in assets from Martino, including cryptocurrency and vehicles, and he will also be required to pay restitution.
The sentencing of Angelo Martino to 70 months in prison marks a significant development in the case of a former ransomware negotiator betraying clients. This article provides further detail on Martino's role at DigitalMint, his collaboration with the BlackCat ransomware group, and the involvement of other cybersecurity professionals in the scheme, including Ryan Goldberg and Kevin Martin. It also highlights the substantial amount of cryptocurrency seized from Martino and the ongoing restitution proceedings.