Nassau Police Set Trap For Men Who Put Skimmer On ATM

Three men from Brooklyn were arrested Wednesday afternoon after police say they came to check on a credit card skimmer they installed on an ATM in Oceanside.

Police say the manager of the Ocean Financial Federal Credit Union, located at 45 Atlantic Ave. in Oceanside, called police on Wednesday after discovering a skimming device on their ATM. Working with the bank, police set up surveillance of the ATM.

Several hours later, three men came to remove the device. Police arrested Costel Ionita, 40, Alexandru Panzaru, 29, and Popescu Constantin, 34, all of Atlantic Avenue/Court Street. The skimmer device, along with a pinhole camera, were recovered from the ATM, and no accounts were compromised.

Ionita is charged with two counts of possession of a forgery device and resisting arrest. Panzara is charged with two counts of possession of a forgery device, two counts of second-degree possession of a forged instrument, two counts of possession of burglary tools and resisting arrest. Popescu is charged with two counts of possession of a forgery device. All three are scheduled to be arraigned in First District Court in Hempstead on Thursday.

Popescu Constantin, left, and Costel Ionita. Photos: Nassau County Police Department