Former Idaho police officer accused of hiding Russian control of company with federal contracts
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BOISE — A former Boise police officer who became the CEO of a Virginia-based technology company is accused of helping conceal Russian ownership and software development to secure contracts with the U.S. government.
Lee Reiber, 55, was arrested last month and charged with conspiracy to commit wire fraud. Reiber worked for the Boise Police Department from 1995 to 2009 before joining Oxygen Forensics Inc. in 2015. He became the company’s CEO, president and chairman in March 2022.
According to the U.S. Department of Justice, Oxygen Forensics claimed to be an independent American company with no foreign ownership or control. Prosecutors allege five Russian nationals, including company co-founder Oleg Sergeyevich Davydov, 52, of Moscow, actually owned and controlled the business through a holding company in Cyprus.
The company’s digital forensics software was developed by a team in Russia under Davydov’s direction, investigators allege. The technology is designed to recover and analyze electronic evidence from phones and other digital devices.
Alleged cover-up helped company win federal contracts
Prosecutors say Reiber and the Russian owners agreed to conceal the company’s connections to Russia after the United States expanded sanctions following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in 2022.
Although the Russian owners were removed from public corporate filings, investigators allege they continued making major business decisions, setting Reiber’s compensation and controlling company bank accounts.
In December 2022 and October 2023, Reiber allegedly certified to the government that the company had no immediate or highest-level owner.
The complaint also details a November 2023 exchange in which a reporter questioned Reiber about the company’s Russian connections. Reiber allegedly warned the Russian owners that public reporting “could destroy this entire opportunity,” referring to a pending contract with the National Computer Forensics Institute.
The institute awarded Oxygen Forensics a five-year software contract in September 2024. The award documents included Reiber’s certification that the company had no immediate or highest-level owner, according to prosecutors.
The company also certified to the Department of War in July 2024 that no foreign person controlled its management or business decisions, the complaint alleges.
Investigators say denials continued into 2026
In March 2026, Reiber allegedly told Homeland Security personnel that no Russians were involved in developing the software and that nobody in Russia had access to the development environment.
Days later, he published a company statement declaring Oxygen Forensics had no development presence in any restricted jurisdiction.
Prosecutors allege the software was actually written and managed in Russia, using a cloud environment administered by one of the Russian owners.
The Russian company connected to the software, now known as MKO Systems LLC, reportedly sold products in Russia to customers that included the Russian Federal Security Service, known as the FSB, the Russian Investigative Committee and the Russian Ministry of Internal Affairs.
Federal authorities seize company assets
A federal magistrate judge authorized the seizure of corporate bank accounts, approximately 57 internet domains and other cyberinfrastructure allegedly used in the scheme. The domains and related infrastructure were seized Sept. 20.
Davydov was arrested at London’s Heathrow Airport while preparing to board a flight to Istanbul. U.S. authorities expect to seek his extradition.
Reiber appeared in federal court in Idaho and was released on bond. He is expected to be arraigned in Los Angeles federal court.
The Justice Department emphasized that the complaint does not allege the software contained malicious code or was used to gain unauthorized access to customers’ systems or data.
Both men face up to 20 years in federal prison if convicted. The allegations have not been proven, and both defendants are presumed innocent unless proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.