Ex-Bank Employee Stole From Dead Customers, Sentenced To Prison

BRADENTON, FL — A Bradenton man who had worked at a former SunTrust Bank will spend time in prison for stealing from dead customers, authorities said.

U.S. District Judge Susan C. Bucklew has sentenced Elias Israel Roblero Rangel, 27, Bradenton, to one year and one day in federal prison for theft by a bank employee and access device fraud. The court also ordered Roblero Rangel to pay $44,187.18 to Truist Bank (formerly SunTrust Bank) as restitution.Roblero Rangel had pleaded guilty on June 13, 2022.

According to court documents, Roblero Rangel worked as a personal banker at SunTrust Bank in Sarasota, Florida, between July 2019 and June 2020. Roblero Rangel misused his position of trust by stealing customer information and repeatedly conducting fraudulent transactions using their personal identifying information. For nearly a year, Roblero Rangel embezzled $44,187.18 from five different bank customers.

A news release from the U.S. Attorney's Office for, Roblero Rangel targeted elderly, deceased bank customers. For example, on or about December 18, 2019, Roblero Rangel ordered a replacement credit card for a customer who had died. The card was mailed to the branch office located in Sarasota.

Roblero Rangel used the card between Dec. 26, 2019, and Jan. 28, 2020, and made multiple fraudulent transactions totaling $10,041.24, federal officials said. When investigators confronted Roblero Rangel, he admitted to committing the fraud and said he had only stolen from one customer.

Investigators found four additional victims. Roblero Rangel used each of those person's debit cards to withdraw money from various Truist Bank ATMs throughout the Middle District of Florida. In many instances, he was captured on surveillance video conducting the transactions.

“The U.S. Postal Inspection Service takes any complaints of the fraudulent use of the mail seriously, especially those who abuse their position of trust and utilize the mail to commit fraudulent schemes,” said Postal Inspector Rick Johnsten in a news release from the Department of Justice.