A man was arrested for allegedly stealing thousands of dollars from low-income Southern California residents.
The suspect, Ioannis Alecsopoulos, 27, is accused of using ATM card skimmers to drain electronic benefit transfer (EBT) accounts, according to the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office.
EBT cards allow recipients to access benefits from CalFresh, CalWORKs, Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), and more.
Prosecutors said Alecsopoulos allegedly used skimming devices to steal EBT account information from an ATM in Lancaster.
On Feb. 1, Alecsopoulos was reportedly seen using nine different fraudulent EBT cards to withdraw over $4,000. He later attempted to withdraw over $13,000 during the same visit, authorities said.
He was arrested at the scene. During the investigation, authorities found additional EBT theft items including nine skimming devices, 94 re-encoded gift cards, and eight pinhole cameras.
Alecsopoulos was charged with 10 counts of felony identity theft; three counts of felony grand theft; and one misdemeanor charge of obstructing a law enforcement officer. He also faces aggravating circumstances that the victims were particularly vulnerable, and the offenses involved planning and sophistication.
On Feb. 4, he was arraigned and his bail was increased to $500,000 at the people’s request. The defense requested a bail review and source of bail motion to be heard on Feb. 10. A preliminary hearing is set for Feb. 19. If convicted as charged, Alecsopoulos faces up to 10 years in prison.
“In the past year, the California Department of Social Services has reported more than $100 million in stolen funds from California victims’ EBT cards,” county officials said. “The majority of illicit cashouts in the past year occurred in Los Angeles County.”
EBT cardholders should be wary of scams involving texting, card skimming, and fake emails, links, and websites.
“Know that the County or state will never request your EBT card number and PIN,” officials said. “Cardholders should lock their cards and change their PIN at the end of each month and cover card numbers when using an ATM or point-of-sale terminal.”
“EBT theft cruelly robs vulnerable individuals of the public benefits they are legally entitled to,” said L.A. County District Attorney Nathan Hochman. “In addition to directly taking critical financial assistance away from children, families, and the elderly, public assistance fraud steals from taxpayers. Our Office will continue to vigilantly investigate and prosecute these cases and hold offenders fully accountable for their criminal actions. We are also working closely with victims and the LA County Department of Public Social Services to return the stolen benefits.”
More information on how to spot EBT scams, skimming devices, and pinhole cameras can be found here.
