An international organized crime ring known as the Romanian Organized Crime Group (ROMAs) is suspected of targeting houses of worship in Maryland and Northern Virginia. The group, which has a national presence, has hit seven temples, mosques, and Hindu temples since 2023, with police arresting members in about half of the incidents.
An international organized crime ring known as the Romanian Organized Crime Group (ROMAs) is suspected of targeting houses of worship in Maryland and Northern Virginia. The group, which has a national presence, has hit seven temples, mosques, and Hindu temples since 2023, with police arresting members in about half of the incidents.
Montgomery (Maryland) County Police suspect that the ROMAs targeted the religious institutions in brazen daylight robberies. In April and May, the group hit two Buddhist temples, two mosques, and one Hindu temple in the Washington, D.C., area.
Surveillance footage from the Wat Thai Buddhist Temple in Silver Spring, Maryland, shows a group of thieves brazenly walking into a Buddhist monk's home while a funeral service takes place nearby and stealing $20,000 in donations from a safe. The suspects didn't take off their shoes at the door in the surveillance footage, making it somewhat apparent that they weren't members.
The suspects then snuck into resident monk Ruangrit Thaithae's residence and allegedly snatched $20,000 in donations from a safe in the span of 20 minutes, according to local reports. The monk was reportedly planning to deposit the money from temple members the next day.
Montgomery County Police have arrested two brothers, Alex Dumitru, 23, and Natalian Dumitru, 18, in connection with two of the burglaries last month. Evidence found in the brothers' homes connected them to the crimes, the department wrote in a press release. Both were arrested on first-degree burglary charges and bailed out with $10,000 personal bonds.
While police have made arrests in some of the cases, Lieutenant Andrew Suh of the Montgomery County Police told Fox News Digital that no more houses of worship or residences connected to temples or churches had been targeted in the area since the arrests. However, Suh said that the international group has operated in the D.C. area for about a decade and that quelling its activity is like "cutting the heads of a hydra."
Suh said that the group is generally focused on obtaining monetary rewards and that they don't have a political motivation or a stance. Despite targeting religious hubs, Suh said that his department doesn't consider these burglaries hate crimes.
Another temple in Accokeek, Maryland, sent Fox 5 surveillance stills of a group of men breaking in around mid-March. Although the men damaged the door, the monks caught on to what was happening and scared them off.
Chris Swecker, who served 24 years as an FBI special agent and was the former assistant director of the FBI, said that he'd never seen organized criminals target houses of worship in his career. However, he was all too familiar with the Romanian Organized Crime Group, calling them "hit-and-run artists."
Swecker said that the ROMAs are "pretty brazen" and that they know where to go to find value. He said that they prey on people who are peaceful and docile and who don't expect people to do bad things.
Swecker noted that taking down organized crime was once a "staple" of the FBI, but he said it seemed like the bureau had "sort of abdicated." He said that he never hears about RICO arrests or big takedowns anymore.
"You just see a disjointed local effort," Swecker added. "They do their best to coordinate between jurisdictions, but without bringing in the feds, it's nearly impossible."
