Dumitru Doban, Wire Fraud Conspiracy, New York 2013

In a brazen online scam, Moldovan national Dumitru Doban, 27, was sentenced to 46 months in prison for his role in a conspiracy to defraud purchasers of motor vehicles over the Internet.

The scam, which took place primarily between 2011 and 2012, targeted individuals from various states, including California, Nevada, North Carolina, and Arizona, as well as Canada. The victims were lured in by advertisements on websites such as eBay, autotrader.com, and autotraderclassics.com.

Once an agreement was reached for the purchase of the vehicles, the buyers were instructed to utilize third-party websites, including eBay Motors and Google Wallet, to conduct the transaction. These websites were made to look legitimate, but were in fact bogus and unrelated to the actual websites.

As part of the scheme, Doban sent the buyers e-mails directing them to send wire transfers for the purchase price, plus shipping costs, to bank accounts that he had opened in Rochester, Columbus, Ohio, Alexandria, Virginia, and Birmingham, Alabama, using fake names and false Czech Republic passports.

After the buyers sent the wire transfers to the bank accounts, Doban sent the money overseas, primarily to the Ukraine and Moldova, through bank-to-bank wire transfers and money transfer services, or withdrew the money from the accounts. The prospective online buyers never received any of the vehicles supposedly offered for sale as part of the scheme.

A total of 18 people were victims of the Internet fraud scheme, with losses totaling $257,489. As part of the plea agreement, Doban admitted that the overall conspiracy involved losses of more than $400,000 but less than $1,000,000.

The United States Attorney's Office is prosecuting another individual, Vasile Leu, also a citizen of Moldova, for allegedly participating in the same Internet fraud scheme.

Doban's conviction was the culmination of an investigation on the part of Special Agents of the Federal Bureau of Investigation.

Defendant: Dumitru Doban

Criminal Charges: Wire fraud conspiracy

City and State: Rochester, New York

Exact Date: Not specified in the source

Sentence: 46 months in prison and ordered to pay $257,489 in restitution

Dollar Amount: $257,489

Source: https://www.justice.gov/usao-wdny/pr/moldovan-man-sentenced-internet-fraud