Cash claw tour of Britain netted £172k
A fraudster who toured Britain to steal a a fortune from Tesco ATMs with a ‘cash claw’ has been jailed for four years and ten months.
Roma traveller Ovidiu Raducanu, 36 grabbed least £172,670 for a period of nine months between November 2019 and August 2020 but may have taken even more.
The implement is placed behind the barrier at a cashpoint and stops notes coming out of the ATM.
Scammers use the prongs on the contraption to build up a wedge of cash.
When customers report not being able to withdraw money the ATM is put out of action and the criminal returns to remove the ‘cash claw’ with their money.
Raducanu took advantage of a flaw in a certain model of Tesco ATMs to carry out the scam.
Sarah Gaunt prosecuting, told the Old Bailey he carried out a ‘a substantial amount of offending’ in London in Surrey, Essex, West Midlands and Nottingham.
She said that there was ‘significant disruption’ to the public since the ATMs were out of service while the criminal activity took place and the fraud damaged ‘public confidence in the banking system.’
Raducanu and an accomplice 46 times by CCTV footage at the cashpoints.
He was arrested in central London on 10 November 2020 while driving a black Volkswagen and a a ‘cash claw’ device was found at his home.
Raducanu has dozens of previous convictions, including theft and conspiracy to defraud.
He has 17 previous convictions in the Republic of Ireland between 2003 and 2017, including a burglary offence in 2016, as well as convictions of actual bodily harm, driving while intoxicated and drug-related offences.
Raducanu also has various convictions for defying police and court orders.
He was born into a travelling community in Romania. He moved to the Republic of Ireland in 2000 after experiencing ‘discrimination in his home country,’ claimed his barrister, Denney Lau.
He then fell into committing crimes due to drug addiction.
With no access to drugs while in custody, Mr Lau said the defendant is now ‘drug free’ and wants to return to Ireland to be with his family. He is a father of three children.
‘He is sorry for what he did,’ Mr Lau said.
Passing sentence Judge Mark Lucraft said that the “public were deprived of an essential amenity” while the affected ATMs were down, and that fraud of this nature can “can result in reputational loss”.
Raducanu of Hazelwood Road, Nottingham, was given four years and ten months in prison for two counts of the possession of an article for use in fraud and two counts of fraud by false representation.
