Marian Dogaru, EBT Card Fraud, California 2024

SAN DIEGO, CA – Seven individuals are facing federal charges this week after a U.S. Secret Service-led task force busted a scheme that siphoned over $181 million in vital benefits from low-income California families. The brazen theft targeted Electronic Benefit Transfer (EBT) accounts, leaving parents stranded at grocery store checkouts with cards showing zero balance.

Marian Dogaru, Catalan Craciun, Vasile Ionita, Andrei Cristian Geangasau, Domitru Ducila Unguru, Roberto Calin, and Razvan Iulian Gaspar are all accused of stealing EBT account information and using it to make fraudulent cash withdrawals from ATMs. The operation, which spanned three days, simultaneously netted three arrests in the Northern District of California, signaling a widespread operation.

According to authorities, the theft occurred between June 2022 and February 2024. The stolen funds represent lifeline assistance meant for food, housing, and essential needs for California’s most vulnerable citizens. U.S. Attorney Tara McGrath minced no words: “EBT fraud literally takes food out of the mouths of children. Parents who don’t know they’ve been targeted get to the grocery checkout and discover their EBT cards have been wiped clean.”

The scheme hinges on the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), distributed through CalFresh, and the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) program, operating as CalWORKS in California. Both programs utilize the California Advantage Electronic Benefit Transfer (EBT) card. Recipients swipe or insert their cards at terminals or ATMs, entering their PIN to access funds. The Secret Service investigation revealed a network allegedly installing skimming devices on point-of-sale terminals and inside ATMs, concentrating on communities with high concentrations of public benefit recipients.

“EBT fraud continues to be an issue in California and throughout the nation,” stated Assistant Special Agent in Charge Michael Peck of the U.S. Secret Service Office of Investigations. “The U.S. Secret Service will continue to investigate and arrest those responsible for EBT fraud as we seek to disrupt their networks and protect our most vulnerable communities.” The stolen data is reportedly re-encoded onto magnetic strips of cards, allowing the perpetrators to make unauthorized withdrawals and purchases.

The charges against Dogaru, Craciun, Ionita, Geangasau, Unguru, Calin, and Gaspar represent a significant, though likely incomplete, blow against this ongoing fraud. Authorities are urging anyone with information about EBT skimming or fraudulent activity to contact the U.S. Secret Service or their local law enforcement agency. This case underscores the vulnerability of vital social safety nets to increasingly sophisticated criminal enterprises.

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