Federal authorities have arrested five individuals suspected of stealing electronic benefits transfer (EBT) card information to illegally withdraw funds meant for low-income Californians, the U.S. Department of Justice announced Wednesday, February 5.

Three of the suspects remain in custody without bond, while the other two, arrested Sunday, appeared in court for the first time on Wednesday.

The arrests followed a coordinated law enforcement operation involving around 70 officers who monitored ATMs across Los Angeles, searching for individuals making multiple withdrawals using cloned EBT cards. The five suspects were detained after allegedly accessing and withdrawing money from accounts belonging to legitimate EBT beneficiaries.

Each defendant faces charges of using unauthorized access devices after reportedly using stolen EBT account numbers and PINs to make fraudulent cash withdrawals. The charge carries a maximum sentence of 10 years in federal prison, with the possibility of a longer sentence based on prior convictions.

Authorities reported that the total amount stolen in these unauthorized transactions reached $25,480, and law enforcement recovered 161 counterfeit or cloned EBT cards. Arrests took place at ATMs in Los Angeles and Torrance, locations identified by the California Department of Social Services as hotspots for EBT fraud.

The Department of Justice identified the suspects as three Romanian nationals and two French nationals, all of whom were in the United States illegally.

“This is an ongoing problem across California, particularly in this region,” said Thom Mrozek, spokesperson for the U.S. Attorney’s Office.

In 2024 alone, more than $126.8 million was stolen from EBT cardholders through fraud, targeting CalFresh and CalWORKS programs that provide food and basic necessities for low-income Californians.

This latest crackdown follows a March 2023 operation in which 15 people were arrested for a similar scheme in the Los Angeles area. In that case, authorities recovered 429 cloned EBT cards and $129,000 in stolen ATM withdrawals. Eleven of those arrested were Romanian nationals.

Fraudsters typically use skimming devices placed inside ATM card readers to capture EBT card data. These devices often include small cameras to record PIN entries, allowing criminals to encode stolen data onto the magnetic strips of blank or repurposed cards, such as gift cards.

Once encoded, "runners" are sent to ATMs across the area to withdraw funds, usually within the first three days of the month when EBT benefits are disbursed.