NYPD, FBI seek ATM skimmer suspects

NYPD, FBI seek ATM skimmer suspects who allegedly operated in Brooklyn, Queens

Authorities are asking for the public’s help to find the two men

Investigators with the NYPD and FBI are looking for two men they believe placed credit card skimmers and clandestine cameras on TD Bank ATMs throughout Queens and Brooklyn last year.

Skimmers are fake credit card scanning mechanisms that scammers can place over legitimate ATM or credit card readers. They’re often sophisticated enough to elude detection by most consumers.

Sorin Ceafa, 35, is a white male, five feet, one inch tall and weighing about 300 pounds. Bogdan Atansiu, 36, is a white male, 5 feet, 11 inches tall and weighing about 190 pounds, police said.

Authorities said that machines targeted by the men include:
211 Montague St. in Brooklyn,
76-02 Main St. in Queens,
164-06 Union Tpke. in Queens,
162-02 Cross Bay Blvd. in Queens,
70-05 Northern Blvd. in Queens.

Anyone with information about the men or their alleged crimes are asked to call the NYPD’s Crime Stoppers Hotline at 800-577-TIPS, for Spanish, 1-888-57-PISTA (74782) or the FBI’s Tip Hotline at 212-384-5000.The public can also submit their tips by logging onto the Crime Stoppers Website at WWW.NYPDCRIMESTOPPERS.COM or texting their tips to 274637(CRIMES) then enter TIP577.

The FBI recommends that consumers protect their information by avoiding ATMs that appear “suspicious”—including those appearing loose, crooked or damaged, or those with scratches or adhesive/tape residue—and obscuring the keypad with your other hand while typing your PIN to avoid recording by a hidden camera.