STAMFORD — Anton Nrecaj, a 41-year-old man from the Bronx, New York, has been sentenced to two years in prison after pleading guilty to a scheme involving the theft of $300,000 from a Greenwich man’s bank account. The sentencing occurred during a state Superior Court hearing in Stamford on October 31.
Earlier this year, Nrecaj entered a guilty plea to charges of conspiracy to commit first-degree larceny and conspiracy to commit first-degree identity theft as part of a plea agreement with state prosecutors. His arrest took place on October 20, 2023, several months after the theft was reported to the authorities.
In January 2023, the Greenwich victim discovered an unauthorized transfer of $300,000 from his bank account. Investigations traced the theft back to Nrecaj, who had obtained the victim’s personal identifying information and arranged for the funds to be transferred from his account.
According to the arrest warrant, Nrecaj had researched the victim via open-source intelligence and determined him to be a suitable target for victimization. With the acquired personal information, Nrecaj went to an AT&T store in Newark, New Jersey, where he requested that the victim’s data and banking software be ported to another phone. The unauthorized transfer of funds was subsequently made using the new phone.
A detective visiting the Newark store learned from an employee that Nrecaj claimed to have lost his phone and needed his number ported to a new device. Surveillance footage showed a man resembling Nrecaj, as confirmed by a driver’s license photo. Additionally, phone records linked Nrecaj to the device used for the bank transfer.
Bank investigators were able to recover the stolen funds shortly after the incident. During the investigation, police discovered that Nrecaj was on probation in New York City and had a prior criminal record. When questioned, he admitted to being “paid for his part” in the bank transfer but denied being the mastermind behind the scheme.
Further investigations revealed that Nrecaj was part of a larger group engaged in various financial crimes in New Jersey and New York, involving stolen personal information and fake bank accounts. As of now, no additional individuals involved in this particular theft have been charged.