ATM Jackpotting Scheme Hits N.Y. Credit Unions for More Than $400,000

Six men were allegedly involved in an ATM jackpotting scheme that stole nearly $418,820 from New York credit unions during a two-week period, the U.S. Attorney’s office for the Northern District of New York in Syracuse said.

According to the U.S. Secret Service, ATM jackpotting crimes have been increasing this year in at least 15 states.

Joelvis Jose Rivas-Solorzano, Jose Medina, Jose Navarro, Deivy Santiago Pena-Rojas, Jefferson Jose Marquez-Marquez, all citizens of Venezuela, were indicted on one count of conspiracy to commit bank larceny and four felony counts of bank larceny. A sixth defendant, Silvio Fabian-Ordonez, also a citizen of Venezuela, was charged with one felony count of conspiracy to commit larceny.

Although these alleged crimes occurred in New York, federal prosecutors said in a prepared statement that these men were involved in a nationwide ATM jackpotting scheme. However, the indictment and criminal complaint did not say how these defendants were tied to a nationwide ATM jackpotting scheme or why the New York credit unions had been targeted.

From Dec. 3 to Dec. 16, 2023, the defendants allegedly targeted five ATMs at the $2.7 billion AmeriCU Federal Credit Union in Rome, N.Y., the $3.6 billion Empower Federal Credit Union in Syracuse,  N.Y., and the $229 million GHS Federal Credit Union in Binghamton, N.Y., according to the indictment.

An FBI investigator said the defendants worked in two teams. The first team used a key to access the ATM’s interior and installed hardware to control it. A second team arrived later and began conducting transactions on the ATM.

Video surveillance showed that after the ATM was infected with malware, one of the suspects allegedly used a card, entered information and the ATM dispensed money. Credit union records showed the funds dispensed were not tethered to any member’s account, according to the FBI investigation.

On Dec. 2, the defendants hit an ATM at AmeriCU in Cicero but no cash was dispensed, according to police.

But on Dec. 10, the suspects allegedly stole $134,400 from an Empower ATM, and the next day they stole $150,020 from another Empower ATM. On Dec. 15, the defendants allegedly stole $48,000 from a GHS FCU ATM, and the next day, they stole $86,400 from another GHS FCU ATM, according to the indictment.

Defendants Rivas-Solorzano, Medina and Navarro pleaded not guilty to five felony charges of bank larceny and one felony charge of conspiracy to commit bank larceny in federal court on Oct. 3, according to court filings. They remain in federal custody.

In July, Pena-Rojas and Fabian-Ordonez also pleaded not guilty, respectively, to all of the felony charges and remain in federal custody. Their cases may go to a jury trial, federal court filings showed.

Marquez-Marquez is in custody in South Dakota and is awaiting to be transported to the Northern District of New York, according to federal prosecutors.

In June, the U.S. Secret Service’s criminal investigative division issued an alert that over the first half of this year there has been an increase in both successful and unsuccessful ATM jackpotting schemes in Utah, Minnesota, Texas, Colorado, Idaho, Maryland, Georgia, South Carolina, North Carolina, Tennessee, California, Pennsylvania, Oregon, Washington and New York.

“These incidents have occurred across multiple ATM manufacturer brands and are believed to have been perpetrated by at least seven different criminal groups,” the Secret Service alert said.

READ MORE: Secret Service Jackpotting Alert; New York Jackpotting Indictment; New York Jackpotting Complaint