2 arrested after defrauding thousands from Bay Area's 'most vulnerable'
NEW YORK CITY, UNITED STATES - 2020/02/17: Bank of America logo seen in Lower Manhattan. (Photo by Alex Tai/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images)
MARTINEZ, Calif. - Two men have been charged with several financial felonies and misdemeanors after allegedly defrauding hundreds of Californians on public assistance, authorities said.
Florin Tanasa, 27, and Adam Nilsson, 30 have been accused of forming a "sophisticated financial criminal scheme" that targeted the state's "most vulnerable residents," Contra Costa officials said. Neither suspect has ties to the county or the Bay Area.
Tanasa and Nilsson are facing seven felonies including second-degree commercial burglary, grand theft, theft, forgery, and conspiracy. Their misdemeanor charges include possession and/or using a fraudulent scanning device.
The pair was arrested on Dec. 1 at a Bank of America on Sycamore Avenue after bank officials contacted authorities about suspicious activity on cash withdrawals from EBT cards at their ATM.
Upon their arrest, Hercules police discovered 50 fraudulently cloned EBT cards, credit card skimming materials, and thousands in cash in their vehicle.
Both pleaded not guilty at their arraignment in Martinez.
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Deputy District Attorney Dana Filkowski argued Tanasa and Nilsson were flight risks and threats to public safety. Hercules police also expressed concern to the presiding judge that the two would be able to post bail "likely from their criminal activity."
Such remarks resulted in Tanasa and Nilsson receiving a bail amount of $1 million each.
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"Nilsson and Tanasa are mobile perpetrators who have preyed upon California’s most vulnerable residents," said Filkowski. "Their financial crimes have bilked individuals and families of assistance they need for support. Had they been released on bail, they would have likely continued their criminal enterprise of defrauding those in need."
The two are also under investigation for committing similar crimes in Belmont and Santa Barbara County, officials said.
To protect yourself from similar crimes, the California Welfare Fraud Investigators Association and California Dept. of Social Services provided resources on how these scams work.