3 ‘ATM skimmers’ want to post bail

THREE Romanians who were tagged in the series of unauthorized withdrawals from automated teller machines (ATM) in Metro Cebu branches of the Land Bank of the Philippines (LBP) last year want to post bail.

Their lawyer, Rameses Villagonzalo, filed a motion asking Judge Ramon Daomilas of the Regional Trial Court Branch 11 to allow them to post bail while the trial for their cases is ongoing.

Romanians Ionut Alexandru Mitrache, Ion Costel, and Razvan Aurelian Stancu are facing cases of theft and violation of Republic Act 10175, or The Cybercrime Prevention Act of 2012.

Victims

The National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) 7 arrested them after at least 50 persons claimed to have been victims of ATM skimming in Cebu sought the agency’s help.

NBI 7 agents arrested Mitrcahe, Costel, and Stancu in March 2017 after their facial features matched those of the suspects who allegedly installed skimming devices in the ATMs of LBP in the cities of Cebu, Mandaue, and Lapu-Lapu.

NBI secured a copy of the footage of the closed-circuit television (CCTV) cameras installed near the three ATM machines.

The accused have allegedly stolen millions of pesos in over a year.

They posed as businessmen, but it turned out they made skimming hard-earned money as their business, NBI said.

Agents found 45 micro scanner chips, clone cards, an improvised skimming tool, two laptops, among others, from the lockers inside the condominium unit of the accused.

In the motion, the accused, through Villagonzalo, argued that the money involved in the theft case is about P150,000, but the prosecutors did not recommend a bail.

Pursuant to Section 81 of RA 10951, Vilagonzalo said the penalty for theft worth P150,000 is prison correctional.

Under the Cybercrime Prevention Act of 2012, the lawyer argued that the maximum penalty for the above case should only be within the range of prison mayor, which is a bailable offense.

Villagonzalo asked Daomilas to grant his clients’ motion to post bail being a “matter of right.” GMD

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