LeakBase Admin Arrested in Russia Over Massive Stolen Credential Marketplace

Ravie LakshmananMar 25, 2026Cybercrime / Dark Web

The alleged administrator of the LeakBase cybercrime forum has recently been apprehended by Russian law enforcement authorities, as reported by state media on Thursday.

According to TASS and MVD Media, a news website associated with the Russian Interior Ministry, the suspect hails from the city of Taganrog. The individual is said to have been taken into custody for establishing and operating a criminal platform that facilitated the trading of stolen personal databases since 2021.

During a search of the suspect’s residence, technical equipment and other items of evidentiary significance were confiscated.

\”The forum hosted an extensive collection of user accounts, bank details, usernames, passwords, and corporate documents acquired through illicit means,\” stated Irina Volk, an official representative of the Russian Ministry of Internal Affairs. \”Over 147,000 forum users had access to this data, enabling them to engage in fraudulent activities against individuals.\”

LeakBase was dismantled in a law enforcement operation earlier this month. The U.S. Department of Justice (DoJ) described the cybercrime forum as one of the largest global platforms where cybercriminals traded stolen data and tools for illicit activities.

The data available on the platform included millions of account credentials and financial information like credit card numbers, banking details, usernames, and passwords that could be exploited for account takeovers.

By December 2025, the platform had attracted over 142,000 members and featured more than 215,000 messages exchanged among users. Visitors to the clearnet site were met with a seizure notice indicating that all forum content, including user accounts, posts, credit details, private messages, and IP logs, had been secured for evidentiary purposes.

LeakBase has been attributed to a threat actor known by online aliases such as Chucky, beakdaz, Chuckies, and Sqlrip. Following the forum’s takedown, reports from KELA and TriTrace Investigations linked Chucky to a 33-year-old individual residing in Taganrog.