Japan extradites suspected Qilin member to Germany

Japan arrested a 28-year-old Russian Qilin suspect in Osaka in May and extradited him to Germany in June.

Japan’s National Police Agency confirmed that a 28-year-old Russian national accused of involvement with the Qilin ransomware group was arrested at an Osaka hotel in May and extradited to Germany in June. Germany sought him over an alleged ransomware attack on a German company; one account calls the warrant provisional and says Germany arrested him after the extradition. The reports disagree on his status, describing him either as an operative involved with Qilin or as a suspected leading figure. Qilin, a ransomware-as-a-service operation active since 2022, has been linked to claimed attacks on Asahi, Die Linke, Palau, the U.S. ATF, and Nissan, plus an alleged March breach of Dow; Asahi’s breach was said to expose data on 1.5 million people. Activity figures also differ: researchers counted 127 Qilin attacks in July and ranked it second, while another account said it claimed over 40 victims a month in 2025 and about 100 in June and kept listing victims after the detention. In early October the group was reported to have allied with DragonForce and LockBit on tool-sharing.