Romanian Arrested in Bulgaria, Jailed in US for Internet Fraud

Romanian citizen Ovidiu-Ionut Nicola-Roman, who was arrested in Bulgaria two years ago for phishing and extradited to the US has received a 4 year jail sentence.

Nicola-Roman is the first foreigner to be convicted of phishing in the US. He was sentenced to 50 months in federal prison Monday, wired.com reported.

He pleaded guilty last year to one count of U.S. computer access fraud and was part of an overseas phishing group the authorities said was responsible for ripping off more than USD 1 M from US citizens.

The 2005 to 2007 plot was simple: send unsolicited e-mails posing as various banks. The messages informed e-mail recipients there was a security problem with their account. The e-mails requested recipients to forward credit card information, dates of birth, Social Security numbers, phone numbers and PIN numbers. Hundreds responded, leading the group to reproduce credit cards and ATM cards.

The Romanian phishers posed as representatives from JP Morgan Chase, Comerca Bank, LaSalle Bank, US Bank, Wells Fargo and others.

The defendant, in seeking leniency, told a Connecticut federal judge that he committed the crimes to care for his sick mother.

Arrest warrants remain outstanding for as many as six other Romanians indicted in the US state of Connecticut.

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