Source: Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) State Crime News
ST. LOUIS – Six people have been accused in an indictment of installing skimming devices on St. Louis area ATMs to harvest bank account information from customers.
Laurentiu Miguel Ivan, 33, Venera Isabelle Dumitru, 28, Mihai Florin Marinescu, 37, Ianus Nita, 52, and Mihai Vlaicu, 47, were indicted August 7 on one count of conspiracy to commit bank fraud, one count of access device fraud and one count of aggravated identity theft. Nelu Nae, 36, is facing one count of conspiracy to commit bank fraud.
Marinescu, Vlaicu and Nae appeared in court Monday and pleaded not guilty. Ivan and Dumitru pleaded not guilty on August 13. Nita has not yet been arrested.
The indictment accuses all six of a conspiracy to install skimming devices on bank ATMs to steal customer account data and PINs that they then used, or attempted to use, to defraud financial institutions. Vlaicu and Marinescu harvested information from numerous victims in January of 2024 by placing skimmers on a bank in Frontenac and a bank in Clayton, the indictment says.
In April, Dumitru, Vlaicu and Ivan used cloned cards to try and withdraw cash in various St. Louis-area locations, the indictment says. On May 2, Marinescu unsuccessfully tried to install a skimming device on an ATM in south St. Louis County and Nae retrieved it the next day, the indictment says. On May 9, Marinescu installed a skimming device on an ATM in Wildwood, the indictment says. On May 11, Nita withdrew and attempted to withdraw cash from a St. Louis County ATM using the account information of at least two victims.
On May 28, Marinescu and Nae installed a skimming device on an ATM in St. Louis, which was located and removed by law enforcement before Nita and Vlaicu could retrieve it, the indictment says.
“It’s not uncommon for some skimmers to be hidden inside an ATM or gas pump, so there’s no way for a victim to know. To help protect yourself, review your bank or credit card statements regularly for unauthorized transactions,” said Special Agent in Charge Ashley T. Johnson of the FBI St. Louis Division. “You can also avoid a hidden skimmer by not inserting your card. Instead, go inside to pay or withdraw money with the merchant or teller.”
Ivan, Dumitru, Marinescu are not legally in the United States and Nita has overstayed his visa, motions seeking to have them held in jail until trial say.
The FBI, the St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department, the Webster Groves Police Department, the Clayton Police Department and the Frontenac Police Department investigated the case with assistance from the St. Louis County Police Department. Assistant U.S. Attorney Cort VanOstran is prosecuting the case.