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Marius Vaduva, 27, of Hollywood, FL, was sentenced to 42 months in prison, followed by five years of supervised release for conspiracy to commit bank fraud and wire fraud, the US Department of Justice said.
In addition to his prison sentence, Vaduva was also ordered to pay $1,334,230.84 in restitution.
Sentencing was by Theodore Chuang, US District Judge in the District of Maryland.
Vaduva admitted that between June 2018 and January 2021, Vaduva and his co-conspirators conspired to steal checks from the mail that was intended for religious institutions in the region.
Prosecutors said that the suspects then deposited the illegally obtained checks into fraudulent bank accounts in multiple financial institutions.
As part of his guilty plea, Vaduva admitted that he and his co-conspirators conducted the thefts by driving to roadside mailboxes of churches and other religious institutions and removing the mail, specifically targeting donation checks.
During the scheme, prosecutors said that Vadiuva and others used false identities to create fictitious bank accounts, including using the aid of one co-conspirator who was an employee at one of the financial institutions and multiple minors to assist in opening the accounts.
The fraudsters then withdrew cash from the fraudulent accounts at ATMs and illegally obtained debit cards that were tied to them.
Specifically, Vaduva opened at least nine fraudulent accounts between Oct. 24, 2019, to Nov. 20, 2019.
The same nine fraudulent accounts received a total of at least 119 stolen checks totaling approximately $41,528.99. Vaduva also deposited at least four stolen checks totaling approximately $2,120.69 into other bank accounts.
Prosecutors noted that upon his arrest in February 2021, Vaduva’s cell phone contained images of at least 21 stolen checks, totaling $10,119.68.
In total, the conspiracy led to the theft of approximately $1,320,829.69 from 3,075 stolen checks.
Previously, these co-conspirators pleaded guilty to similar charges:
- Daniel Velcu, age 43, of Baltimore;
- Marian Unguru, age 36, of Baltimore;
- Vali Unguru, age 19, of Baltimore;
- Florin Vaduva, age 31, of Dania Beach, Florida
- Nicolae Gindac, age 52, of Dania Beach, Florida;
- Mateus Vaduva, age 29, of Baltimore.
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