Allisson Bebiano

Again and again, Allisson Mar Bebiano traveled to the U.S., used bogus debit cards to steal thousands of dollars from American ATMs and then returned to his native Brazil.

Over the course of roughly five years, the FBI says, Bebiano made 18 trips to the U.S. and made off with roughly $1 million.

But the 30-year-old’s luck ran out last year, when he brought his scheme to Park County.

Thanks in large part to the work of local law enforcement — and the efforts of Cody Police Officer Scott Burlingame in particular — Bebiano was apprehended in Cody in late November.

Burlingame helped put together a case indicating that, between Oct. 29 and Nov. 25, Bebiano had used bogus debit cards at Big Horn Federal Savings Bank ATMs in Powell and Cody to access bank accounts around the world; he fraudulently withdrew at least $7,960, the officer found.

Given the international and multi-state nature of the case, it was quickly taken up by federal prosecutors with the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Wyoming.

“We were able to make that into a federal case through the hard work that Scott [Burlingame] had done,” said Supervisory Senior Resident Agent Charlie Jones, who oversees the FBI’s work in Wyoming.

In January, Bebiano pleaded guilty in federal court in Cheyenne to a felony count of possessing device-making equipment with intent to defraud; that was related to equipment that Cody police found in Bebiano’s vehicle at the time of his arrest — devices capable of encoding debit cards’ magnetic strips with another person’s bank account information.

Earlier this month, U.S. District Court Judge Alan Johnson effectively sentenced Bebiano to time served, so he can be deported back to Brazil.

“We agreed to a time served sentence when we thought that would be close to the guideline sentence,” said Mark Trimble, a spokesman for the U.S. Attorney’s Office.

Bebiano forfeited the nearly $13,100 that was found in his car in Cody and was ordered to immediately pay roughly $28,100 more, for just over $41,200 in total restitution.

FBI Agent Jones attended the April 20 Cody City Council meeting to present Burlingame with a commendation from FBI Director Christopher Wray, which praised the officer for his “immeasurable help” to the bureau and for “a job well done.”

Jones was even more effusive of Burlingame’s work, saying the officer did a “phenomenal job.”

“... I don’t even know how to say how he put all those pieces of information together quick enough to be able to make an arrest like that on an international fugitive,” Jones told the city council.

He added that Bebiano’s crimes were “impacting a lot of financial institutions in and around Cody.”

Big Horn Federal leaders first contacted Cody police on Nov. 12, after a series of fraudulent transactions at their local ATMs were flagged by bank software.

The following day, Burlingame issued an alert to regional law enforcement agencies and local banks, while reaching out to the FBI for assistance.

In his efforts to identify the suspect, the officer reviewed surveillance footage from Big Horn Federal’s ATMs, then tracked down rental car information from the Cody and Billings airports to learn the culprit had been going by the name “Douglas Machado.” Burlingame also canvassed local hotels and learned “Machado” had been staying in Cody.

The Cody officer “was pretty adamant in following up,” said Jones, of the FBI.

“Machado” made another attempt to run five bogus debit/credit cards at Big Horn Federal’s Cody bank on Nov. 20, but left without getting any cash. Burlingame staked out the bank on his Nov. 24 patrol shift, but the man never showed up. However, on Nov. 25, Big Horn Federal’s president called police again to report the suspect was trying to use the ATM at the nearby Sunlight Federal Credit Union.

Burlingame happened to be in the area and quickly stopped the man. He truthfully identified himself as Bebiano, but police would find a Brazilian ID card for a “Douglas Diego Gomez Machado” in the rented vehicle.

Officers also found the roughly $13,088 in cash — mostly in $20 bills — plus a Deftun credit card reader/writer and counterfeit cards encoded with bank accounts belonging to at least 11 different people.

FBI supervisor Jones told the Cody council that Bebiano “had been doing this type of stuff, international crime, across several states [and] several areas in Wyoming.”

Bebiano entered the country on a tourist visa on Oct. 5, 2019 — about three weeks before the thefts started in Cody — and had been cleared to stay until April 4, authorities say. Now he’s being sent back to Brazil.

Bebiano was set to be sentenced in federal court in Cheyenne in late March, but that hearing — along with many others — was pushed back to June amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

In the meantime, the FBI thought it was important to honor Burlingame’s work, as Jones and others from the FBI traveled from Casper to Cody in April to honor the officer. Cody Mayor Matt Hall also offered gratitude to Burlingame for the “nice work.”

“Officer Burlingame is an experienced officer who has demonstrated this level of tenacity and investigative skills on several major criminal investigations,” Cody Police Chief Chuck Baker later said in a statement. “This recognition of Officer Burlingame’s outstanding efforts elevates all of the Cody Police Department, and we are proud of his efforts.”