Former mechanic used ex-employer’s fuel card 52 times after resigning

A former heavy-equipment mechanic kept his former employer’s fuel card after resigning and allegedly used it 52 times over almost five months, according to investigators. The transactions caused the company losses of more than 25,000 Romanian lei.

Merticaru Iliuță-Marian had worked for the company since 2021. He received the card for fueling equipment and paying road tolls during travel to drilling sites. He resigned in December 2023, and his employment officially ended on January 16, 2024, but he did not return the card.

According to the case file, he used it between January 20 and May 19 to buy large quantities of fuel, including fuel in containers that he allegedly later sold. He also allegedly used it to fuel his personal car, buy automotive products and pay the bridge toll at Fetești. The transactions were recorded in Crevedia, Urziceni, Bacău, Fetești, Țăndărei, Căzănești and Constanța.

The alleged fraud came to light on May 19, 2024, when the company administrator noticed several fuel purchases and payments made on a Sunday when the business was not operating. Investigators later searched the man’s home in Beiuș and seized his phone for digital examination. He was detained for 24 hours and, when confronted with the evidence, allegedly fully admitted the acts. He said he threw the OMV card out of his car window in May 2024.

On July 31, 2026, the Constanța Tribunal sentenced him to two years and two months for repeated fraudulent financial operations and illegal access to a computer system. The court suspended the sentence under supervision for three years and ordered 120 days of unpaid community service. He must also pay 25,364.23 lei in damages, of which 10,499 lei had already been paid during the trial. He appealed, and the Constanța Court of Appeal set the first hearing for November 25, 2026.