SAVANNAH, Georgia: An illegal alien who participated in a scheme to sell fictitious farm equipment in Georgia and across the country has been sentenced to prison after pleading guilty to wire fraud.

Viorel Cristea, 33, a Romanian citizen illegally present in the United States, was sentenced to 21 months in prison after pleading guilty to one count of Wire Fraud, said Margaret E. "Meg" Heap, U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Georgia. U.S. District Court Chief Judge R. Stan Baker also ordered Cristea to pay restitution to victims of $679,100, and to be deported upon completion of his prison term.

There is no parole in the federal system.

"Farmers in Georgia and around our nation already face enormous challenges to provide our citizens with food and fiber. Getting ripped off by unscrupulous scam artists - especially those who are illegal aliens - shouldn't be one of those hardships," said U.S. Attorney Heap. "We applaud the exceptional work of the Pierce County Sheriff's Office and Homeland Security Investigations in bringing Cristea to justice."

A co-conspirator in the case, Bogdan Alexandru Gherghevici, a/k/a "Victor Zema," 27, also was illegally in the United States and fled when the investigation began. He is considered a fugitive and believed to be in Romania, where he is a citizen. Gherghevici is considered innocent unless and until proven guilty.

The investigation began in May 2025 when a victim contacted the Pierce County, Georgia, Sheriff's Office regarding suspicious activity from a farm equipment dealer purported to be located in Blackshear, in the Southern District of Georgia. Sheriff's Office investigators and Homeland Security Investigations agents determined the company was fraudulent, and HSI agents identified Cristea and Gherghevici as conspirators.

Both men were named in a 14-count federal indictment in August 2025, alleging that at least as early as March 2025, and up to and including May 2025, the two participated in an extensive scheme falsely claiming to sell used farm equipment. This fraudulent scheme victimized more than a dozen prospective purchasers across the country, many of them elderly, and resulted in a total loss of more than $600,000.

As described in the plea agreement, Cristea and the conspirators "employed a host of false representations to induce victims to 'purchase' the fictitious farming equipment," inducing the buyers to wire transfer large sums of money to bank accounts owned by Cristea and co-conspirators. The victims were told their equipment would be delivered in the coming days and weeks, and when the machinery didn't arrive the "sellers" would no longer respond to inquiries.

"When hardworking farmers are targeted by scams like this, it's not just their livelihoods that are threatened - it's the communities and families who depend on them," said Steven N. Schrank, Special Agent in Charge of Homeland Security Investigations in Georgia and Alabama. "HSI is committed to protecting honest people from fraudsters who prey on trust and vulnerability. This case shows that, together with our law enforcement partners, we will pursue those who exploit others and ensure they are held accountable for their actions."

"We appreciate the help of our federal partners in this prosecution," said Pierce County Sheriff Ramsey Bennett. "It's refreshing to see a con artist prosecuted for stealing from hard-working Americans. Thank you to the investigators and prosecutors who made this happen for the victims."

The HSI Savannah Field Office is investigating the case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Ryan Bondura for the Southern District of Georgia is prosecuting the case.