MOSCOW, April 2 (RAPSI) - Two men pleaded guilty this week to charges related to a large-scale money laundering scheme carried out in the US, but orchestrated out of Ukraine, according to a statement released by the US Department of Justice Tuesday.

Oleg Pidtergerya, 49, and Robert Dubuc, 40, each pleaded guilty this week in New York to wire fraud conspiracy and conspiracy to commit access device fraud and identity theft.

The conspiracy was allegedly directed by 33-year-old Oleksiy Sharapka with the help of LLeonid Yanovitsky,39, in the Ukrainian capital of Kiev.

Investigators assert that Sharapka and Yanovitsky were working with hackers who gained access to customer bank accounts in over a dozen international banks and financial institutions. The funds were then diverted from the hacked accounts to accounts and pre-paid debit cards controlled by the ringleaders, according to the DOJ statement.

Pidtergerya and Dubuc allegedly managed “cash out” crew in New York and Massachusetts respectively, which withdrew the illicit funds from the fraudsters’ bank accounts.

“Both men admitted coordinating ATM and bank withdrawals of the stolen funds. In addition they admitted to sending proceeds of the fraud to Sharapka and Yanovitsky in Ukraine,” the statement reads.

US prosecutors have issued indictments against Sharapka and Yanovitsky, both of whom remain at large.

The men will be sentenced in July. They face a maximum of 20 years in prison for wire fraud conspiracy, and up to five years for conspiracy to commit access device fraud and identity theft. They face hefty fines as well.