LEXINGTON, Ky. (LEX 18) — Two people have been arrested after police say that they placed skimming devices on ATMs throughout Lexington.
27-year-old Vitus Kraus and 45-year-old Florin-Dan Balan were arrested on Thursday after Lexington police say the University of Kentucky Police Department contacted financial crimes detectives about a vehicle suspected of being involved in fraudulent ATM transactions.
Using license plate readers, detectives found the vehicle at Kroger on Euclid Avenue. They then arrested the two suspects after observing them attempting to manipulate an ATM.
Police say that with the help of Kroger loss prevention and the license plate readers, they were able to connect both Kraus and Balan to additional skimming devices located at four Kroger locations in Lexington. Those locations were the Krogers on:
- Hartland Parkway
- Richmond Road
- Tates Creek Road
- Leestown Road
According to police, the extent of financial data that was compromised is unknown at this time. Anyone who used ATMs at these locations is being asked to review their accounts for suspicious activity and report it if any is found.
Kraus has been charged with 27 counts of criminal possession of a forged instrument, possession of a forgery device, trafficking in financial information, and false making or embossing of a credit card. Balan was charged with 31 counts of criminal possession of a forged instrument, possession of a forgery device, trafficking in financial information, and false making or embossing of a credit card.
Both Kraus and Balan were booked into the Fayette County Detention Center.
