Alin Carabus, a 42-year-old Romanian who was extradited from Spain, admitted to being part of a large ATM theft scheme in the U.S., and pleaded guilty to bank fraud before a U.S. judge.

He thus faces up to 30 years in prison for the bank fraud charge. His sentencing is scheduled for February next year, reports Northjersey.com.

Alin Carabus was part of a crime ring that managed to steal more than USD 5 million from thousands of American bank customers by using card-reading devices installed in ATMs. A total of 15 people were convicted in this case.

The American authorities have called it one of the largest schemes “ever uncovered by law enforcement.” The theft ring defrauded Citibank, TD Bank, Wells Fargo and other institutions between 2012 and 2013.

Alin Carabus was part of a Queens-based group of Romanians who stole bank customer information by installing card-reading devices and pinhole cameras on ATMs. Another member of the group, Robert Eduard Mate, pleaded guilty in the same scheme. Both Carabus and Mate, along with other co-defendants in this case, were indicted in 2014.

Two other men convicted in the scheme were arrested in 2013. At that time, police recovered 80 fake cards, USD 10,000 cash, and several clothing items the defendants used to disguise themselves while installing the card-reading devices and cameras at ATMs.

The ringleader was Romanian Marius Vintila, who was sentenced to 10 years in prison last year, after pleading guilty. Vintila used the alias “Dan Girneata” to open bank accounts, rent vehicles and rent multiple self-storage units where he stored the skimming devices. He also provided fake IDs to his associates.

Romanian Ionut Vasile Ciruba-Stana is the sole remaining suspect who remains at large, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office.

Irina Popescu, irina.popescu@romania-insider.com