CLEVELAND — Federal prosecutors say members of a Romanian crime ring slipped skimming devices onto store checkouts in the Cleveland area this year, as part of an intricate scheme to steal SNAP, or food-stamp, benefits and turn them into cash.
Five men are facing federal charges of conspiracy to commit wire fraud and identity theft, along with access-device fraud — making, mailing and possessing gadgets to capture card numbers and PINs. They’re also charged with stealing government money.
Three of the men were arraigned in federal court in Cleveland on Friday morning. All five of them are Romanian citizens who were living in California, according to a recent indictment. One man, Ionut Ilie or Ionut Dorabantu, is also accused of illegally returning to the United States after being kicked out of the country twice.
Court records list several aliases for the men. One of them, Constantin Eugen Ion, also goes by the name “Piranha.”
The other three defendants are Valentin Velicu, Dragos Georghie Vasile and Marian Alexandru Semplican, according to the indictment.
Federal investigators say they targeted people with Electronic Benefits Transfer, or EBT, cards.
Those cards, used to deliver SNAP benefits and short-term cash assistance for needy families with kids, are uniquely vulnerable to fraud.
RELATED: Advocates say food-stamp theft is 'a failure of government.'
In most states, including Ohio, benefits cards only have old-school magnetic stripes — not the embedded chips and tap-payment technology you see on credit and debit cards.
The U.S. Government Accountability Office says criminals stole at least $320 million in SNAP benefits across the nation between Oct. 1, 2022, and Dec. 20, 2024. In January, the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Office of the Inspector General said cumulative thefts could climb to $555 million by the end of September, if the federal government doesn’t work with states to upgrade cards and payment terminals.
RELATED: Thieves stole his SNAP benefits. Twice.
Propel, a tech company with a mobile app used by SNAP recipients, believes those theft numbers are big underestimates. In a recent report, the company estimated that EBT cardholders lost more than $600 million to skimming, phishing and other predatory tactics in 2025.
“These terrible crimes are often perpetrated by organized gangs of foreign criminals. EBT theft harms vulnerable families, undermines the important work of state agencies and robs the American taxpayer,” the authors at Propel wrote.
RELATED: 'Staggering losses': Ohio investigator talks about SNAP theft, skimming and defenses
In the case playing out in federal court in Cleveland, prosecutors say the Romanian crime ring targeted hundreds of benefit accounts in California and Ohio, putting tens of thousands of dollars in payments at risk. Cleveland.com first reported on the allegations this week.
The indictment says members of the group produced skimming devices to match payment terminals at convenience stores and gas stations. They installed software on the gadgets to grab account information. Then they used Bluetooth-enabled devices to collect the data.
Using stolen card numbers and PINs, the crime ring found out how much money was in people’s accounts — and when their monthly benefits typically arrived, according to the indictment. Then they loaded the information onto blank cards, using those cards to pull money out of accounts at ATMs or payment machines the group controlled.
Court records show special agents with the FBI were tracking that activity, as part of an investigation that involved the USDA, which oversees the SNAP program; Homeland Security Investigations; the Secret Service; and the state department's bureau of diplomatic security.
Prosecutors say the men coordinated in February to scope out payment terminals at grocery stores and convenience stores in northern Ohio and create matching skimmers. In late February, one of the men mailed a package containing skimmers and other tools, along with a fraudulent passport and other fake identification documents, from California to Ohio.
In early March, Ilie placed skimmers at 7-Eleven stores in Toledo and Maple Heights and the Broadway Food Center in Toledo, according to the indictment. Prosecutors say he later hid skimming devices at gas stations in Cleveland and Toledo.
The group mailed some skimmers through the U.S. Postal Service and another batch from a UPS store in Fresno, California, to a UPS store in Mentor.
The scheme involved selling some card data and cloning other cards. Court records say the men didn’t realize they were dealing with FBI agents posing as buyers and confidential sources who were cooperating with the FBI.
Four of the five men have been arrested. Ilie was arraigned April 1 and pleaded not guilty. Velicu, Vasile and Semplican pleaded not guilty Friday. Ion has not been arrested yet, according to court records.
Michelle Jarboe is the business growth and development reporter at News 5 Cleveland. Follow her on X @MJarboe or email her at Michelle.Jarboe@wews.com.
