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Romanian Nationals Charged in $9 Million Online Auction Fraud Scheme
Costel Alecu, 37, and Madalin Ghinea, 34, both Romanian nationals, were charged in a twelve-count indictment with roles in an international online auction fraud scheme that targeted victims in the Northern District of Ohio and elsewhere in the United States.
The indictment alleges that Alecu, Ghinea, and others devised a scheme to entice victims to purchase items online, including vehicles and other high-value items, that did not exist, and to obtain the personal identifying information of their victims. As a result, victims suffered a combined loss of approximately $9 million USD.
Alecu and Ghinea were arrested by Romanian authorities in March 2021. The indictment alleges that the group used a network of money launderers and money mules to obtain payment from their victims and transfer the funds overseas.
The indictment also alleges that Alecu and others used the stolen personal identifying information of their victims, credit cards, and bank accounts to launder money overseas and fund the operation of their network by purchasing items such as Virtual Private Networks and domain names.
An indictment is only a charge and is not evidence of guilt. A defendant is entitled to a fair trial in which it will be the government’s burden to prove guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.
The case was investigated by the Cleveland FBI, with help from authorities in Romania, and is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Duncan T. Brown and Brian S. Deckert, and Senior Counsel Timothy Flowers of the Criminal Division’s Computer Crime and Intellectual Property Section.
Key Facts
- State: Ohio
- Category: Cybercrime|Fraud & Financial Crimes
- Source: DOJ Press Release â†â€â€
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