On Wednesday, the Department of Homeland Security’s U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agency announced that it had arrested nine people, including a number of U.S. marines, for stealing bulletproof vests and other military controlled items meant for U.S. forces in Iraq, according to ICE’s Feb. 22 release.Some of the vests were later sold over the Internet, and illegally shipped to ICE agents posing as buyers.A number of additional suspect are thought to be members of the U.S. military in Iraq.“At a time when our troops in Iraq need all the body armor they can get, it is extremely troubling to see bulletproof vests destined for those troops being stolen from our military bases at home for resale to the public,” ICE Assistant Secretary Julie L. Myers said in the release. “It is even more troubling that individuals would try to sell these items for profit to people they believe were international arms dealers.” One of those arrested, Erika Jardine, a Vista, Calif. native, was sentenced on Wednesday to six months in prison, three years supervised released, two years of community service and a fine of $6,500 for exporting munitions without a license. The investigation of Jardine was first launched in June 2004 after it was discovered that she was distributing controlled U.S. technology to eBay bidders. During these investigations, undercover agents bought 18 Outer Tactical Vests (OTVs) that had been stolen from military bases. Information gleaned from the Jardine investigation led ICE agents to a number of Marines stationed at Georgia’s Camp Pendleton.In total, the Naval Criminal Investigative Service (NCIS) has identified 12 Marines as suspects, 8 of whom have already been arrested and charged with stealing government property.Don’t forget to keep checking in at our CSO Security Feed page for updated news coverage. Related content brandpost Unmasking ransomware threat clusters: Why it matters to defenders Similar patterns of behavior among ransomware treat groups can help security teams better understand and prepare for attacks By Joan Goodchild Sep 21, 2023 3 mins Cybercrime news analysis China’s offensive cyber operations support “soft power” agenda in Africa Researchers track Chinese cyber espionage intrusions targeting African industrial sectors. By Michael Hill Sep 21, 2023 5 mins Advanced Persistent Threats Cyberattacks Critical Infrastructure brandpost Proactive OT security requires visibility + prevention You cannot protect your operation by simply watching and waiting. It is essential to have a defense-in-depth approach. By Austen Byers Sep 21, 2023 4 mins Security news Gitlab fixes bug that exploited internal policies to trigger hostile pipelines It was possible for an attacker to run pipelines as an arbitrary user via scheduled security scan policies. By Shweta Sharma Sep 21, 2023 3 mins Vulnerabilities Podcasts Videos Resources Events SUBSCRIBE TO OUR NEWSLETTER From our editors straight to your inbox Get started by entering your email address below. Please enter a valid email address Subscribe