Date: October 14, 2021 Contact: newsroom@ci.irs.gov BOSTON — A Romanian national was sentenced in federal court in Boston in connection with an ATM skimming scheme operating throughout Massachusetts and other states including Connecticut, New Hampshire, New York and South Carolina. Nemanja Milosavljevic was sentenced by U.S. District Court Judge William G. Young to 27 months in prison and one year of supervised release. On March 31, 2021, Milosavljevic pleaded guilty to conspiracy to conduct enterprise affairs through a pattern of racketeering activity (more commonly known as RICO conspiracy), conspiracy to use counterfeit access devices and aggravated identity theft. Milosavljevic was a member of the Hornea Crew, led by co-conspirators Constantin Denis Hornea and Ludemis Hornea, and engaged in ATM skimming – obtaining debit card numbers and PINs from unsuspecting bank customers, creating counterfeit cards and making unauthorized withdrawals from the victims' bank accounts. Over a period of 18 months, the Crew installed skimming devices to steal debit card numbers and PINs from unsuspecting ATM customers in Massachusetts, Connecticut, South Carolina, Georgia and other locations within the United States. The stolen information was then used by Milosavljevic and others to clone the victim customers' debit cards and make unauthorized withdrawals from those victim customers' bank accounts at ATMs throughout the United States. Members of the Crew transferred money throughout the United States and to Romania and the People's Republic of China. Some of those transfers were for the purchase of skimming devices and related components from abroad. In May 2018, Judge Young sentenced Constantin Denis Hornea to 65 months in prison, three years of supervised release and ordered him to pay $242,141 in restitution and a money judgment of $54,260. Also in May 2018, Judge Young sentenced Ludemis Hornea to 42 months in prison, three years of supervised release and ordered him to pay $57,422 in restitution and a money judgment of $11,124. Acting United States Attorney Nathaniel R. Mendell; Joseph R. Bonavolonta, Special Agent in Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Boston Division; and Colonel Christopher Mason, Superintendent of the Massachusetts State Police, made the announcement. Assistance with the investigation was also provided by the Internal Revenue Service's Criminal Investigations in Boston; U.S. Customs and Border Protection; U.S. Secret Service; U.S. Postal Service; Massachusetts Department of Correction; Connecticut State Police; the Amherst, Billerica, Braintree, Boston, Florence (S.C.); Greenwich (Conn.), Houston (Texas) New York City (N.Y.), Quincy, Saluda (S.C.), Southwick, Waltham, Whately, and Westwood Police Departments; South Carolina Law Enforcement Division; Richland County (S.C.) Sheriff's Department; and the Solicitor's Offices of Greenville and Saluda Counties. Assistant U.S. Attorney Timothy E. Moran, Chief of Mendell's Organized Crime and Gang Unit, prosecuted the case.
