Man pleads guilty after ATM jackpotting probe uncovers dozens of child sexual abuse files
By Riley Conlon
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PELL CITY, Alabama (WVTM) — A man pleaded guilty to an ATM jackpotting conspiracy in Pell City and to possessing child sexual abuse material found during the investigation.
Rodner Josue Centeno Moreno, 22, a Venezuelan national, entered the pleas in separate but related cases, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Alabama said Wednesday.
The investigation began early June 14, when a Pell City police officer saw an SUV parked in front of a bank ATM. The officer turned around to return to the ATM and found it open, with the SUV gone.
Investigators determined the ATM had been breached through “jackpotting,” a scheme that involves breaking into an ATM’s computer compartment so it can be operated without authorization, according to plea agreements.
Officers later found the SUV abandoned in the bank parking lot. A search turned up tools, gloves, cash, a cellphone and a wallet containing multiple bank cards and a temporary driver’s license in Moreno’s name, with an address in Murfreesboro, Tennessee.
Later that day, Moreno contacted the Murfreesboro Police Department to turn himself in for attempting to rob the ATM, according to the plea agreements. Murfreesboro officers went to his residence and took him into custody.
On June 15, Pell City officers traveled to Murfreesboro to serve arrest warrants for Moreno. After his arrest, investigators searched his iPhone and found dozens of files containing child sexual abuse material, prosecutors said.
Deiber Jorhen Castillo Rodriguez, 26, a Venezuelan citizen and the driver of the SUV, was charged with conspiracy and attempting to access a protected computer in furtherance of fraud. He had not been arrested as of Wednesday, the U.S. Attorney’s Office said.
“The defendant’s guilty pleas reflect the seriousness of two distinct crimes – ATM jackpotting, which threatens the security of our financial institutions, and the possession of child sexual abuse material, which compounds the harm the victims have suffered,” U.S. Attorney Phillip W. Williams Jr. said. “We remain committed to holding offenders accountable and protecting both the security of our communities and the most vulnerable among us – our children.”
Moreno remains in the St. Clair County jail without bond.
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