Tallahassee Man Arrested After Monroe County Probe Into Cloned Credit Cards

An investigation by the Monroe County Sheriff’s Office into cloned and stolen credit and debit cards across multiple Florida counties led to the arrest of Daniel Balan of Tallahassee. Balan was booked into jail on Feb. 6, 2026 and faces multiple counts of grand theft and fraudulent use of personal identification information, local authorities said.

Monroe County officials said their inquiry began after victims reported unauthorized access to bank accounts. “In January 2025, seven victims told the Sheriff’s Office their bank accounts had been illegally accessed resulting in a combined financial loss of $5,203. The subsequent investigation showed cloned credit/debit cards and compromised PIN numbers were used. Bank security footage was used to identify Balan,” the sheriff’s office said in its announcement.

Law enforcement arrested Balan in Leon County during an ATM fraud investigation. “Balan was subsequently arrested in Leon County by the Sheriff’s Office there following an ATM fraud investigation wherein he was caught in the act of conducting fraudulent withdrawals and in possession of multiple re-encoded gift cards with manipulated PIN numbers. He was dressed in the same distinctive clothing and in possession of the same gear as seen in the security footage in Monroe County, including the same bicycle, helmet, face mask, backpack, and wireless earpieces,” the sheriff’s office said.

Federal prosecutors, in court documents, described a broader pattern of alleged activity in the Tallahassee area beginning in early 2025. “Court documents reflect that beginning on January 28, 2025, the defendant placed ‘skimming’ devices and cameras on multiple ATMs in the Tallahassee, Florida area. The devices and cameras were used to capture customer account and access device information. Then, between February 8 and 9, 2025, the defendant used the stolen information to fraudulently obtain $56,340 in customer funds. At the time of arrest, law enforcement found 28 gift cards in the defendant’s pocket that had been encoded with stolen account information and labeled with a corresponding PIN,” federal prosecutors wrote.

Officials reported that bank security footage and physical evidence seized at arrest, including multiple re-encoded gift cards and manipulated PINs, were central to identifying and detaining the suspect. Jail records show an arraignment on Monroe County charges is scheduled for March 3, 2026.

Some source details remain inconsistent: Balan is identified as 46 years old in some records and 47 in others, and the timeline and loss amounts differ between the sheriff’s office figure of $5,203 tied to seven victims and the $56,340 loss cited in federal court documents. Authorities have linked alleged activity to multiple Florida counties, including incidents in the Florida Keys, underscoring cross-jurisdictional investigative work.

Verify your account statements and report suspicious ATM equipment or unexpected bank activity to your bank and local law enforcement. For Monroe County residents, the case highlights the importance of monitoring transactions, safeguarding PINs, and coordination between county sheriff’s offices as investigators proceed.