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(Jackson, Mississippi) Today, Attorney General Lynn Fitch announced the sentencing in federal court of Romanian national Antonio Rafaila, on one count of Illegal Possession, Production, or Trafficking in Device-Making Equipment for placement of skimmer devices on credit card readers in stores in Jones, Madison, and Laurel Counties. This case was investigated by the Mississippi Attorney General’s Office with assistance from the Madison Police Department, the Texas Financial Crimes Intelligence Center (TX FCIC), and the U.S. Secret Service. The case was prosecuted by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Mississippi.
“Card skimming scams hurt consumers and businesses,” said Attorney General Lynn Fitch. “Thanks to the diligent work of our Cyber Fraud Task Force, we were able to put a stop to this scheme, hold both of the individuals accountable, and set up the deportation of two criminal illegal aliens in our community.”
On December 18, 2025, Judge Kristi H. Johnson of the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Mississippi sentenced Rafaila to 9 months imprisonment in the custody of the Federal Bureau of Prisons, as well as a 1-year term of supervised release and ordered him to pay a total of $1,911 in restitution to the retailers that were affected. Rafaila entered the country illegally and will be subject to deportation upon release from prison. Rafaila is the second and final defendant to be sentenced in this card skimming scam case.
Mississippians can guard against skimmer devices accessing their card information by using tap pay or chip read terminals and avoiding card swipes, if possible. Consumers should also pay attention to the look of the card reader. Skimmer devices like those used here fit over the reader, making it look different and even larger than other devices and may even pull off if lifted from the corners of the reader. A video that shows what a skimmer looks like and a list of tips for retailers and consumers to guard against skimmer fraud can be found at AttorneyGeneralLynnFitch.com/Cyber-Crime.
This year, the Mississippi Attorney General’s Office has recovered 15 skimmers throughout Mississippi, including one during Operation S.A.F.E, a statewide operation to help businesses and consumers identify and report credit card skimmers.
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