Oxygen Forensics CEO charged in alleged Russian infiltration plot

Federal prosecutors have charged Lee Reiber, CEO of Oxygen Forensics, and Moscow-based Russian national Oleg Sergeyevich Davydov with conspiracy to commit wire fraud. The pair allegedly engaged in a scheme to conceal the Russian ownership of the Alexandria, Virginia-based digital forensics company to secure lucrative US government contracts, including a deal with the US Secret Service.

Prosecutors allege that Reiber acted as the American face of the company to hide its ties to Russian nationals. While Reiber reportedly told the US government that the company had no Russian ownership or involvement in software development, investigators claim that Davydov and four other Russian nationals actually owned the firm through a holding company in Cyprus.

The software produced by Oxygen Forensics is used to recover and analyze electronic data from digital devices. Before the alleged deception, the company’s Russian-developed software had been sold to the Russian Federal Security Service, the Russian Investigative Committee, and the Russian Ministry of Internal Affairs. Reiber was reportedly installed as CEO following US sanctions on Russia in 2022.