Michigan man accused of rigging Ohio ATMs to steal data from bank cards

Authorities are investigating whether a Troy man in custody in connection with the theft of more than $53,000 from Ohio ATM customers through the use of devices known as skimmers has committed similar crimes elsewhere.

Petru Vascan, 31, was being held Monday in the Oakland County Jail on felony charges of tampering with an electronic access device and identity theft filed in U.S. District Court in Toledo.

Vasile Ciocan, 28, of Toronto -- who goes by the alias Armando Gabriel and has alleged ties to organized crime -- also is being sought by authorities.

He has a criminal history that includes similar thefts elsewhere, said police in Sylvania Township, Ohio, who are investigating the case with the Secret Service.

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Police in Sylvania, Ohio, arrested him Friday and are investigating whether the thefts are linked to an international ring and whether he and his partner committed similar crimes in Pennsylvania, Illinois, New York, Washington, D.C., and elsewhere in Ohio.

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Sylvania Police Detective Jamey Harmon said the pair took the stolen data, used it to encode cards and then went to ATMs in other cities, where they withdrew $480, close to the maximum of $500 that could be withdrawn at a time. In total, Harmon said, the men compromised about 400 accounts and stole money from about 60 customers.

Read the Detroit Free Press Article

DFP article 2

Read the Toledo Blade article here