Two Men Sentenced For Interstate Stolen Credit Card Scheme And Bank Fraud

     The United States Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Pennsylvania announced that two men convicted by a Harrisburg jury of stealing over a hundred credit card numbers from over 25 banks and credit unions were sentenced Wednesday to federal prison.

     According to United States Attorney Peter J. Smith, Wednesday, Chief Judge Christopher C. Conner sentenced Ramil Kismat, of New York, to 64 months in prison, as well as a period of two years of supervised release following incarceration.   Previously, Chief Judge Conner had sentenced the co-defendant, Sergey Sorokin, of New Jersey, to 58 months of incarceration followed by two years of supervised release. Sorokin faces deportation to Russia following service of his sentence.

     In November 2012, a jury convicted Kismat and Sorokin of fraudulently obtaining over 100 credit card and debit card numbers from a variety of banks and credit unions. These stolen credit card numbers were embossed on cards for use in retail establishments. Between June and October 2010, Kismat and Sorokin used these credit and debit card numbers at of stores throughout the Mid-Atlantic states.

     The scheme was initially discovered by investigators for Target Stores in the Harrisburg area.  They observed two individuals repeatedly entering their stores, attempting to purchase gift cards with multiple credit cards, many of which were regularly declined.  Through a comprehensive investigation conducted with the United States Secret Service, the scheme was uncovered and Kismat and Sorokin were identified and charged.  The evidence revealed their activities took place primarily at Target stores in New Jersey, Pennsylvania, and Maryland. Evidence also showed that credit cards were used at other retailers. The potential loss from the defendants’ use of these fraudulent credit cards in this four-month period was over half a million dollars.

     Although the primary victims in this case were the 25 financial institutions and over a hundred citizens whose accounts were compromised, Target Stores provided substantial investigative resources in solving and prosecuting this case.  The U.S. Attorney’s Office also acknowledged the efforts of the United States Secret Service, Silver Spring Township Police, Swatara Township Police, and Wegman's Stores for their efforts.

     The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Michael A. Consiglio.