Also from Borderland Beat: Romanian Gang in California Skimmed EBT Cards to Trade Baby Formula with Mexican Cartels
By Socalj 1/21/2024 02:14:00 PM
"Socalj" for Borderland Beat
Orange County, California authorities arrested 48 alleged members of a Romanian crime ring who allegedly stole hundreds of thousands of dollars from low-income Californians by skimming their state benefit cards.
The suspects are accused of installing skimming devices in stores and using them to swipe the information off of EBT (electronic benefit transfer) cards, which low-income families use to buy food and baby formula.
Once they have the information, they bleed the cards dry, buying baby formula which they then bring down to Mexico - where formula is in short supply - and engage in trade with drug cartels.
The victims may not realize they have lost all their benefits until they are at the checkout, trying to buy groceries for their families.
"These are not victimless crimes," said Orange County District Attorney Todd Spitzer. "The victims are single mothers struggling to put a roof over their children's heads and food on the table and hardworking people who need a helping hand who find themselves standing at the checkout line with bags full of groceries only to be humiliated when they find that they have no money in their account because a thief has surreptitiously taken everything."
More:
https://www.borderlandbeat.com/2024/01/romanian-gang-in-california-skimmed-ebt.html
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