Cedar Grove ATM 'Skimmed,' Man Pleads Guilty

By Alexis Tarrazi (Patch Staff), additional reporting by Eric Kiefer

Authorities have apprehended a man who helped to orchestrate an ATM skimming scheme that stole banking info from customers in several states, including at a location in Cedar Grove, New Jersey.

Linked to a large-scale, long running "ATM skimming" scheme, Robert Mate, a/k/a “Chioru,” a/k/a “Marcel Varga,” 29, of Romania, was arrested for stealing bank account information from customers, U.S. Attorney Paul J. Fishman announced Friday.

Mate was arrested in Spain and extradited to the United States where he admitted to installing secret card-reading devices and pinhole cameras on ATMs throughout the country including New Jersey, according to the prosecutor's report.

According to court documents, on or about November 22, 2012, ATM security cameras captured Mate removing a skimming device and pinhole camera from a Citibank ATM located in Cedar Grove.

Among the information reportedly stolen during this skimming operation was the bank account information and PIN number of a Cedar Grove resident who held a Citibank account.

• Cedar Grove Police Offer Tips on Avoiding ATM Fraud

Mate also confirmed removing a “skimming” device and pinhole camera panel from that Citibank ATM in Cedar Grove on or about Nov. 22, 2012, according to questions asked in open court.

Mate pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge William J. Martini in Newark federal court to Count One of a six-count indictment, which charged him with conspiracy to commit bank fraud. Of the other two individuals charged on the indictment, Alin Dumitru Carabus was apprehended in Spain and extradited to the United States, and his case is pending, and Ionut Vasile Ciurba-Stana remains at large.

Mate could face up to 30 years in prison and a $1 million fine.

According to documents filed in this case and other cases and statements made in court:

Mate participated as a high-level member of an extensive scheme to steal bank customer account information, commonly referred to as “ATM skimming,” by installing secret card-reading devices on ATMs throughout New Jersey, New York, Connecticut, Florida, and elsewhere. The scheme was organized by Marius Vintila, 33, who previously pleaded guilty to bank fraud conspiracy and aggravated identity theft charges.

The scheme defrauded Citibank, TD Bank, Wells Fargo, and multiple other financial institutions out of at least $5 million and affected thousands of bank customers.

Vintila and Bogdan Radu designed and constructed sophisticated card-reader devices and pinhole camera panels capable of reading and storing customers’ bank account information and personal identification numbers.

Mate and others then secretly installed the card-reader devices and the pinhole camera panels onto bank ATMs, and removed them a few days later after they had recorded customer bank account information as customers performed routine bank transactions at ATMs. After the account information was stolen, the stolen data was used to create thousands of false and fraudulent ATM cards, which Mate and others used to withdraw millions of dollars from customers’ bank accounts.

The ATM skimming operation in which Mate participated is one of the largest ever uncovered by law enforcement.

To date, 16 individuals have been charged in connection with this scheme; 13 have pleaded guilty, and one – Dinu Horvat – was convicted after a week-long trial.

Sentencing is scheduled for Sept. 8, 2016.

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