An illegal alien from Romania has been convicted of using electronic devices to break into ATM machines to steal money from public assistance benefits accounts meant to help low-income families in California.
Marius Oprea, 38, was handed 75 months in a federal prison for using the devices to skim money from the accounts by creating counterfeit debit cards in the names of welfare program enrollees, the Justice Department announced in an April 1 press release.
United States District Judge Maame Ewusi-Mensah Frimpong handed down the sentence on March 29 and ordered Oprea to pay $28,974 in restitution.
Last June, the convicted thief pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit bank fraud, and admitted that he and his cohorts used counterfeit cards to fraudulently make withdrawals from the accounts of Californians on assistance.
Oprea was accused of being the ring leader of the skimming crew and prosecutors showed that he had the devices shipped to a P.O. Box he rented. Prosecutors also presented evidence that Oprea maintained a database of accounts and names from which they could steal the money meant for low-income residents of Los Angeles:
The operation focused on the Bank of America cards that the state of California uses to dole out benefits to unemployed and disabled individuals.
The government added that the state program actually made Oprea’s theft easier because the state debit cards lack a certain security feature.
“[Oprea] illegally entered our country for one purpose – to take advantage of the weaker ATM security here, which does not require cards containing computer chips,” the government’s sentencing memorandum said. “He pursued fraud like a full-time job, netting thousands of victims’ accounts.”
The case was investigated by the FBI, the Ventura County District Attorney’s Office, and the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Office and was investigated through the Vulnerable Communities Task Force, which focuses on prosecuting individuals and organizations that prey on communities less likely to report crimes to law enforcement and have historically had less legal recourse to address those targeting them.
The FBI recommends that card users pay special attention to the card slots when using an ATM or card payment device. Look for a hidden camera used to watch you put in your PIN number, check to see if the card slot seems out of place or too large, and even push on the card slot to see if it seems easily loosened from the face of the machine.
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