Man Sold Fake CIA, FBI Badges Online: Federal Officials

Officials are searching for a man who they say made counterfeit badges for the CIA, FBI and Homeland Security Investigations and sold them online.

Roberto Craciunica, 34, was indicted in the Eastern District of Virginia on several charges related to making and distributing counterfeit badges, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement authorities said. Interpol issued a notice for his arrest.

The Romanian thought to be living in Germany sold the counterfeit badges from Jan. 2010 to Sept. 2015 online through a company called Master Equipment, ICE said in a statement. He instructed buyers to pay via Western Union and PayPal, officials said.

The badges were used by several people in the U.S., including a man who tried to impersonate a CIA officer in Jan. 2014 to get into the secure area of Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport. He was prevented from doing so when Transportation Security Administration officers noticed inconsistencies with his statements and credentials, authorities said.

Another alleged CIA impersonator was confronted by police while wearing body armor and carrying a gun at a Michigan movie theater in 2013, according to ICE. When approached, he showed police a fake CIA badge.

A third man was indicted in August 2015 after allegedly using counterfeit Homeland Security Investigations credentials to access the Naval Nuclear Training Command in South Carolina, ICE said. He was armed with a Sig Sauer pistol at the time.

Authorities said all three were using badges and credentials produced by Master Equipment.

Craciunica has claimed to be making theatrical props for films, someone familiar with the investigation told Vice News.