to a total of 5 years in prison and a fine of $600,000 after being found guilty of committing online fraud against popular online shopping websites, such as eBay.
Razvan Caprarescu was convicted by two United States courts of conspiracy to commit bank fraud, as well as of attempting to use a forged Belgian passport.
The 39-year-old pleaded guilty to both charges and revealed details about the criminal organization he was part of, which listed vehicles for sale on popular online shopping websites, including eBay.
According to the FBI, the scheme ran for seven months, from October 2011 to June 2012, counting a total of 35 victims, from whom sums of money amounting to $690,000 / €556,000 were stolen.
The scammers would list virtual products for sale on online shopping websites and expect potential victims to contact them to make a purchase. In most cases, the products were vehicles, so the transactions involved large sums of money.
Once all the details of the fake purchases were arranged, the victims were invited to deposit the money into bank accounts set up by the criminals. These accounts were opened using fake identities, which were supported by fake documents, such as stolen passports. Most of the money was sent back to Romania, to other members of the group.
