A Bulgarian man pleaded guilty in federal court in Boston this week in connection with a string of thefts from Martha’s Vineyard Savings Bank ATMs that occurred eight years ago.
Georgi Kanev, 33, entered the plea Tuesday to conspiracy to commit access device fraud and aggravated identity theft. He was identified in court records as a Bulgarian national. U.S. District Court Judge Leo T. Sorokin scheduled sentencing for May 26.
Mr. Kanev and an unnamed co-conspirator allegedly installed skimmers and cameras on two Martha’s Vineyard Savings Bank ATMs in July and August 2013. The devices enabled them to obtain magnetic strip information and PIN numbers from ATM customers, which was then used to create counterfeit ATM cards, court records allege.
The unauthorized withdrawals were first reported following the Labor Day weekend in 2013. Paul Falvey, who was then the bank’s president, told the Gazette at the time that almost $100,000 had been fraudulently withdrawn from customer accounts. About 90 of the bank’s customers were affected, he said.
Some customers noticed the action and notified the bank, Mr. Falvey said, while other transactions were picked up through fraud detection. Those affected were credited immediately, he said.
This week’s plea was announced in a news release by United States Attorney Nathaniel R. Mendell and Frederick J. Regan, special agent in charge of the U.S. Secret Service for the Boston field office. They credited Edgartown and Oak Bluffs police for providing valuable assistance in the investigation.
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