Dutch police arrest suspected ShinyHunters figure Pepijn van der Stap, also investigated over alleged murder plots
Dutch police arrested a 24-year-old Amsterdam man on September 15 on suspicion of playing a role in the ShinyHunters criminal organisation. Police have not named him, but Brian Krebs identified him as Pepijn van der Stap, a convicted hacker. A search of his laptop reportedly turned up details of two murders "to be committed abroad", which he is believed to have tried to solicit. Police are investigating this separately from the ShinyHunters activity. A Rotterdam court ordered him held for at least another three months, and further arrests have not been ruled out. His role is disputed. FBI Director Kash Patel called him "one of the alleged leaders of ShinyHunters", while the group told media he has "no association with us".
Detalhes técnicos
- Police said the arrest was not part of the investigation into the February hack of Dutch telecoms firm Odido, in which data on more than 6.2 million people was stolen.
- According to Krebs, Van der Stap (handle "Umbreon") was convicted in 2023 of data theft and extortion of victims while working as a software engineer at a security firm. Prosecutors said he earned between €1.5 million and €2.7 million.
- He was released in December 2025 and has since worked as a penetration tester at Amsterdam-based Neo Security. Its CEO Benjamin Korper told Reuters that investigators visited the office on the day of the arrest and that no evidence has been found of compromised systems or customers.
- The targets and countries involved in the murder plots, and whether anyone was recruited, have not been disclosed. Digital forensic work is ongoing.
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Dutch police arrest suspected ShinyHunters figure Pepijn van der Stap, also investigated over alleged murder plots
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Dutch police arrested a 24-year-old Amsterdam man on September 15 on suspicion of playing a role in the ShinyHunters criminal organisation. Police have not named him, but Brian Krebs identified him as Pepijn van der Stap, a convicted hacker. A search of his laptop reportedly turned up details of two murders "to be committed abroad", which he is believed to have tried to solicit. Police are investigating this separately from the ShinyHunters activity. A Rotterdam court ordered him held for at least another three months, and further arrests have not been ruled out. His role is disputed. FBI Director Kash Patel called him "one of the alleged leaders of ShinyHunters", while the group told media he has "no association with us".
Technical Details
- Police said the arrest was not part of the investigation into the February hack of Dutch telecoms firm Odido, in which data on more than 6.2 million people was stolen.
- According to Krebs, Van der Stap (handle "Umbreon") was convicted in 2023 of data theft and extortion of victims while working as a software engineer at a security firm. Prosecutors said he earned between €1.5 million and €2.7 million.
- He was released in December 2025 and has since worked as a penetration tester at Amsterdam-based Neo Security. Its CEO Benjamin Korper told Reuters that investigators visited the office on the day of the arrest and that no evidence has been found of compromised systems or customers.
- The targets and countries involved in the murder plots, and whether anyone was recruited, have not been disclosed. Digital forensic work is ongoing.