Orlando, Florida - Acting United States Attorney A. Lee Bentley, III announces that a federal jury today found Marin Gigore Dobre (36, a citizen of Romania) guilty of possession of device making equipment. He faces a maximum penalty of 15 years in federal prison. A sentencing hearing has been set for March 10, 2013.
Dobre was indicted on October 9, 2013.
According to testimony and evidence presented at trial, between Sept. 11, 2013 and Sept. 13, 2013, Dobre was part of a team from Romania that had installed skimming devices on at least two bank ATMs in Orlando. A “skimmer" device captures a person’s account information stored in the magnetic strip on credit and debit cards. Bank officials were alerted to installation of the first device by an alert bank customer, and when a second device was installed two days later, the bank notified the Orange County Sheriff’s Office. Sheriff’s deputies began surveillance at the second ATM location and observed Dobre serving as a lookout, while his associate (Cristian Octavian Barbu, 31) removed the skimmer device from the ATM. Both men were apprehended at the scene.
Barbu pleaded guilty on Dec. 2, 2013. His sentencing hearing is scheduled for March 10, 2014.
This case was investigated by the U.S. Secret Service and the Orange County Sheriff’s Office. It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Bruce S. Ambrose.
Source: U.S. Department of Justice, Office of the United States Attorneys
