Romanian Man Gets 45 Months for ATM Skimmers and Pinhole Cameras That Hit 190+ Accounts

Published Oct. 28, 2026. Case statuses are current as of that date.

You put your card in a bank ATM, type your PIN, take your cash and leave. Nothing seems wrong. But according to federal prosecutors in upstate New York, two men had already fitted some machines with hidden card readers and tiny cameras, and more than 190 customers later found money missing from their accounts.

Gheorghe Nistor, 44, a national of Romania, was sentenced on Oct. 6, 2026, to 45 months in federal prison for bank fraud and aggravated identity theft, the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Northern District of New York announced [1].

Important: Nistor pleaded guilty and has been sentenced. His co-defendant, Radu-Lucien Grigoras, was indicted with him in October 2024, but the Oct. 26 release does not say how his case has ended, so his status is pending. Grigoras has not been convicted on the information we have and is presumed innocent.

How the scheme worked, step by step

As part of his guilty plea, Nistor admitted the following, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office [1]:

1. Installing the gear. Nistor admitted that between about April and August 2024, he and Grigoras put skimming devices and pinhole cameras on ATMs belonging to financial institutions in Onondaga County, Cayuga County and other states.
2. Capturing the card. The skimmers secretly recorded the debit card information of cards that unsuspecting customers inserted into the ATM.
3. Capturing the PIN. The pinhole cameras recorded customers as they entered their PINs.
4. Cloning. The stolen card data was encoded onto the magnetic strips of other cards.
5. Cashing out. Nistor used the cloned cards with the stolen PINs to withdraw cash from ATMs.

In total, Nistor admitted that he and Grigoras fraudulently withdrew about $191,983 from the accounts of more than 190 accountholders [1].

The list of agencies that helped shows how far the case reached: the FBI's Albany Field Office led the investigation with help from the New York State Police, Pennsylvania State Police, Town of Cicero and City of Auburn police in New York, the Leavenworth, Kansas, Police Department, and the St. Charles City and St. Peters police in Missouri [1].

The people involved and their status

Gheorghe Nistor, 44, of Romania. Pleaded guilty to bank fraud and aggravated identity theft. On Oct. 6, 2026, Senior U.S. District Judge David N. Hurd sentenced him to 45 months in prison followed by three years of supervised release. Prosecutors said he will face deportation proceedings after he serves his sentence [1]. The release does not mention restitution.

Radu-Lucien Grigoras. Identified by prosecutors as Nistor's co-defendant. A federal grand jury in the Northern District of New York returned a sealed four-count indictment against both men on Oct. 2, 2024 (case 5:24-cr-00409), according to the court docket as summarized by PACER Monitor, charging two counts of bank fraud and two counts of aggravated identity theft. The Oct. 26 release does not give his plea or the outcome of his case. Status pending; he is presumed innocent unless proven guilty [1] [2].

"ATM skimming is not a victimless crime. It is calculated theft that preys on hardworking people and threatens the security of our entire financial system," said First Assistant U.S. Attorney John A. Sarcone III [1].

"Mr. Nistor and his co-conspirator installed skimming devices on ATMs to steal from innocent Americans trying to access their hard-earned money," said Craig L. Tremaroli, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI's Albany Field Office [1].

Assistant U.S. Attorney Matthew J. McCrobie prosecuted the case.

Why skimming still works

Skimming relies on the magnetic strip on the back of a debit card. If thieves copy the strip's data and record your PIN, they can make a working clone, which is what Nistor admitted doing. Chip transactions and contactless "tap" payments are harder to copy, but many cards still carry a magnetic strip, and the stolen data can be used at machines that accept it.

Red flags at the ATM

• A card slot that looks bulky, loose, misaligned or a different color from the rest of the machine. Give it a gentle tug; real parts don't move.
• A keypad that feels thick or spongy, or sits higher than normal.
• Tiny holes, strips or attachments above the screen, on the light bar, or on a panel near the keypad, where a pinhole camera could be pointed at your hands.
• Glue residue, tape or scratches around the card reader.
• An ATM in a poorly watched spot that looks tampered with. If in doubt, use another machine, ideally one inside a bank branch.

What to do if you're targeted

1. Cover the keypad with your other hand every time you type your PIN. It defeats hidden cameras.
2. Use tap-to-pay or your bank's app for cardless ATM withdrawals when your bank offers it.
3. Turn on transaction alerts so you see withdrawals as they happen.
4. Check your account often, and call your bank right away about any withdrawal you didn't make. Federal rules on debit card losses give you more protection the faster you report.
5. Report a tampered ATM to the bank that owns it and to local police. Don't try to remove a device yourself.
6. Report fraud to the FTC at ReportFraud.ftc.gov. If your identity was misused, go to IdentityTheft.gov.

Case status (as of Oct. 28, 2026)

Defendant	Court	Status	Source
Gheorghe Nistor, 44, of Romania	U.S. District Court, N.D.N.Y. (Senior Judge David N. Hurd)	Pleaded guilty (bank fraud, aggravated identity theft); sentenced Oct. 6, 2026, to 45 months plus 3 years' supervised release; faces deportation proceedings after sentence	[1]
Radu-Lucien Grigoras	U.S. District Court, N.D.N.Y., 5:24-cr-00409	Indicted Oct. 2, 2024 (4 counts); outcome not stated in the Oct. 26 release (pending); presumed innocent	[1] [2]

Statuses can change.

Sources

1. U.S. Attorney's Office, Northern District of New York, "Romanian National Sentenced for Fraud and Identity Theft," Oct. 26, 2026. https://www.justice.gov/usao-ndny/pr/romanian-national-sentenced-fraud-and-identity-theft
2. United States v. Grigoras et al., No. 5:24-cr-00409 (N.D.N.Y.), docket summary, PACER Monitor (last checked by that site Dec. 31, 2024). https://www.pacermonitor.com/public/case/56350824/USA_v_Grigoras,_et_al

---

Corrections and updates: If you are named in this article, or represent someone who is, and believe anything here is inaccurate or out of date (including a dismissal, acquittal, or change in case status), please contact us at editorandchief@scammers.com. We will review it and update the article promptly.