This ruling marks his third and final guilty plea in what prosecutors have called the largest identity theft scheme in U.S. history.

According to a statement issued from the U.S. Department of Justice, in the past three years, Gonzalez has managed to amass millions of dollars by breaching the U.S. retail networks, gaining access to credit and debit card numbers and then selling them

"The case is one of the largest data breaches ever investigated and prosecuted in the United States," the statement said.

The case charges Gonzalez of stealing data on 130 million credit and debit cards.

Gonzalez faces sentencing in at least three separate cases related to hacking activities, in Massachusetts, New Jersey and New York.

Under a plea agreement filed Dec. 16, Gonzalez, who hacked under names including "soupnazi" and "segvec", will be given a prison term of between 17 years and 25 years, U.S. Department of Justice officials.

A preliminary sentencing date has been set  for March 19, a day after Gonzalez is scheduled to be sentenced for the September guilty plea.

Back in September, Gonzalez pleaded guilty to charges that were filed in New York and Boston and admitted he led an international ring that stole credit and debit card records from U.S. retailers including TJX Cos., OfficeMax Inc. and BJ’s Wholesale Club Inc.

Under that plea agreement, Gonzalez would serve from 15 to 25 years and forfeit more than $1.65 million.