Romanian gang busted for wiping out Californians' bank accounts after 'skimming' their debit cards at the cash register, as one perp billed as one of 'Romania's most wanted' faces up to 30 years in prison

A Romanian man convicted for his role in a debit card skimming scheme in California is expected to be sentenced up to 30 years in federal prison next month.

Orange County authorities busted 48 suspects connected to an organized crime ring using card skimming operations to steal from people on public assistance and ATM accounts at the end of last year.

Florin Duduianu, one of Romania's most wanted criminals, was arrested in the operation and found guilty in January of two counts of aggravated identity theft.

Police arrested the 39-year-old after they observed him make multiple withdrawals using different cards at the same ATM. Duduianu had four Visa gift cards encoded with Electronic Benefits Transfer account numbers.

'The victims are single mothers struggling to put a roof over their children's' heads and food on the table and hardworking people who need a helping hand who find themselves standing at the checkout line with bags full of groceries only to be humiliated when they find that they have no money in their account because a thief has surreptitiously taken everything,' said Orange County District Attorney Todd Spitzer. 

Orange County authorities busted 48 suspects connected to an organized crime ring using card skimming operations to steal from people on public assistance and ATM accounts

Florin Duduianu, one of Romania 's most wanted criminals, was arrested in the operation and found guilty in January of two counts of aggravated identity theft

According to the FBI, skimming occurs when devices are illegally installed on ATMs, point-of-sale terminals, or fuel pumps to capture data or record cardholders’ PINs

Criminals then use the data to create fake debit or credit cards and steal from victims’ accounts

'Meanwhile, the thieves are using this money to fund organized crime, buy luxury cars worth hundreds of thousands of dollars, and to lead a life of luxury that the true recipients can only dream about.'

Police said when they searched Duduianu's cellphone they found dozens of photos and videos related to ATM skimming as well as tools and techniques used to skim EBT information.  

Duduianu previously pleaded guilty to three other counts of bank fraud and unlawful use of unauthorized access devices.

His sentencing is scheduled for April 19, where he will face a statutory maximum sentence of 30 years in federal prison for each bank fraud count, up to 20 years in federal prison for the unauthorized access devices count, and a mandatory two-year prison sentence consecutive to his underlying sentence for each aggravated identity theft count.

According to the FBI, skimming occurs when devices are illegally installed on ATMs, point-of-sale terminals, or fuel pumps to capture data or record cardholders’ PINs.

Criminals then use the data to create fake debit or credit cards and steal from victims’ accounts.

The amount of EBT funds stolen went up more than $2 million across California between January 2023 and January 2024, according to the Orange County District Attorney's Office.

Authorities said the criminals using the stolen public assistance funds can be seen in public social media posts driving luxury cars worth hundreds of thousands of dollars, flaunting Rolex watches, and wearing designer clothes and shoes.

During the law enforcement crack down one suspect in Cypress was arrested with $30,000 in cash and 60 cloned EBT cards manufactured using stolen EBT card numbers and PIN numbers. Another suspect in Brea was arrested with $27,000 along with 42 cloned cards. 

Authorities said the criminals using the stolen public assistance funds can be seen in public social media posts driving luxury cars worth hundreds of thousands of dollars

The amount of EBT funds stolen went up more than $2 million across California between January 2023 and January 2024

A suspect in Seal Beach was arrested with more than $14,000 stuffed in a glove box after making repeated withdrawals using cloned EBT cards at a convenience store ATM and then returning with more cloned cards to make additional illegal withdrawals. 

More than $185,000 in cash and 491 cloned public assistance cards worth $471,360 in potential stolen funds have been recovered by investigators during the operation since May 1, 2023.

Many of the suspects have been determined to have entered the United States through illegal border crossings and a lack of accurate criminal history has made it difficult for prosecutors to argue for higher bail or no bail, according to the district attorney's office.

The FBI said several of the suspects busted have connections to Florian Tudor, the alleged leader of the notorious and violent ATM skimming organization known as the Riviera Maya Gang based out of Cancun, Mexico.