A man has been sentenced to more than six and a half years in federal prison for his role in an ATM card-skimming operation that targeted machines in Chicago and New Jersey. According to authorities, Florin Nicolae Tarta, along with two others, installed skimming devices on several Bank of America ATMs. The devices included a metallic plate equipped with a card reader, memory chip, and battery. Once placed inside the ATM, these devices captured financial account information from users’ cards. Additionally, the group placed a pinhole camera near the ATM’s keypad to record customers entering their PINs.
After several days, Tarta and his co-conspirators retrieved the devices and used computers to transfer the stolen data onto magnetic strips on gift cards. They then used these counterfeit gift cards to withdraw cash at various banks. The total losses from unauthorized transactions amounted to $177,280.
The scheme was uncovered in March 2024 when law enforcement found a hidden camera on an ATM in Westfield, New Jersey. Tarta was arrested when he returned to retrieve the device.
Earlier this year, a jury in U.S. District Court in Chicago convicted Tarta, 40, of Satu Mare, Romania, on charges of bank fraud, access device fraud, and aggravated identity theft. On September 10, 2025, U.S. District Judge LaShonda A. Hunt sentenced him to six years and nine months in federal prison.
Two co-defendants also pleaded guilty and received prison sentences: Leonid Grigore Smetanca, 45, of Satu Mare, Romania was sentenced to three and a half years; Radu Farcas, 42, of London, England received two and a half years.
The sentences were announced by Andrew S. Boutros, United States Attorney for the Northern District of Illinois; Douglas S. DePodesta, Special Agent-in-Charge of the Chicago Field Office of the FBI; with assistance from the Westfield Police Department in New Jersey.
“Defendant repeatedly engaged in criminal conduct that imposes an enormous toll on the U.S. economy,” Assistant U.S. Attorney Brian Hayes argued in the government’s sentencing memorandum in Tarta’s case. “Card skimming is a widespread problem plaguing financial institutions and consumers.”
