A suspected EBT scammer wanted by the FBI in Southern California was taken into custody in Florida.
The alleged scammer, known only by the alias “Walerian Grabowski,” was taken into custody on Wednesday by the U.S. Marshals Service, according to the Broward County Sheriff’s Office.
Seamus Hughes of Court Watch connected Grabowski’s arrest to the alleged bank fraud and identity theft ring that operated in Southern California from about November 2021 to September 2022.
Grabowski and four others — Birdal Osman, Ilie-Sebastian-Laur Vasilescu, Bogdan Adrian Purgariu and Silviu-Florin Spiridon — used card skimming devices to steal money from victims’ EBT cards, according to the FBI.
An indictment indicates the thefts took place in Alhambra, Garden Grove, Tustin, Huntington Beach, Irvine, Fullerton, Brea, Culver City, Los Angeles, Santa Ana and Newport Beach.
The skimmers were placed on terminals operated by Bank of America, Citibank, FirstBank, Union
Bank, Wells Fargo Bank, U.S. Bank and SchoolsFirst Federal Credit Union, the indictment added.
The alleged scammers requested more than $220,000 from upwards of 300 accounts at the terminals, of which they received at least $171,000.
Grabowski’s four alleged accomplices were last seen in Southern California.
Anyone with information is asked to call the FBI Los Angeles at 310-477-6565 or visit the FBI Los Angeles Field Office website.