Crime & Safety

New York Woman Admits to 'Skimming' ATM Cards at Dedham Savings

Woman helped install "skimming" devices on ATMs.

A Connecticut woman has admitted her role in a scheme to steal banking information at ATMs across New England.

Gabriella Graham, 21, of Miller Place, N.Y., pleaded guilty on Dec. 19, before United States District Judge Mark R. Kravitz in New Haven, Conn., to one count of conspiracy to commit bank fraud.

According to court documents and statements made in court, between February 2011 and July 2011, Graham and others conspired to install “skimming” devices on ATMs at 11 banks and one credit union in Connecticut, Massachusetts and Rhode Island, including .

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The devices captured information encoded on the magnetic strips of bank cards used by customers. The co-conspirators also placed devices on the ATMs that contained hidden pinhole cameras, which recorded the personal identification numbers that bank customers keyed into the ATMs to gain access to their accounts. The co-conspirators used the stolen information captured by the skimming devices and pinhole cameras to create counterfeit bank cards that allowed them to withdraw funds from the customers’ accounts, according to a statement released by the U.S. Attorney's Office.

Graham helped produce counterfeit ATM cards, wrote pin numbers of the backs of the cards and, on occasion, used the cards to make unauthorized withdrawals from ATMs. She also served as a lookout while other members of the conspiracy installed and removed the skimming devices, and made unauthorized withdrawals from accounts, authorities stated.

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As a result of this scheme, more than 250 bank accounts were victimized, and financial institutions have suffered losses of approximately $336,057.64, including $9,545.52 at the machine installed on the Dedham Savings ATM.

Judge Kravitz scheduled sentencing for March 8, 2012, at which time Graham faces 30 years in jail and a fine of up to $1 million.


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