Nicolae Sarbu, Bank Fraud, New York 2015

GRAINY TIMES EXCLUSIVE

BUFFALO, N.Y. – In a stunning case of brazen deception, two Romanian nationals have pleaded guilty to their roles in a massive bank fraud scheme that left Bank of America reeling with losses of over $183,000.

Nicolae Sarbu and Marinela Unguru-Ducila, both from Romania, appeared in federal court before U.S. District Judge Richard J. Arcara, where they faced the music for their crimes.

Sarbu, a mastermind of the operation, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit bank fraud and aggravated identity theft, charges that carry a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison and a mandatory two-year sentence, respectively.

Unguru-Ducila, on the other hand, pleaded guilty to misprision of a felony, a charge punishable by up to three years in prison.

According to Assistant U.S. Attorney Marie P. Grisanti, who is handling the case, Sarbu and his cohorts used skimming devices and cameras to record bank account information and personal identification numbers (PINs) from unsuspecting customers at ATMs in the Buffalo and Rochester areas, as well as in Pennsylvania and New Jersey.

The scheme, which was carried out on 10 occasions between August and November 2015, resulted in the defendants making unauthorized withdrawals of cash from various ATMs in the Western District of New York, Pennsylvania, and New Jersey.

The total loss suffered by Bank of America as a result of this fraudulent activity was a staggering $183,120.54.

The investigation into the scheme was led by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) under the direction of Acting Special Agent-in-Charge Kevin Kelly.

Sarbu and Unguru-Ducila are scheduled to be sentenced on May 17, 2017, at 1:00 and 1:30 p.m., respectively, both before Judge Arcara.

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