Romanian EBT suspect gets confrontational in courtroom as case faces another setback
BAKERSFIELD, Calif. (KGET) — The first case identified by the District Attorney as EBT theft in Kern County has seen the most setbacks in the court system.
Alberto-Ionel Baran was pictured in court smiling at the camera, visibly upset by the KGET media presence. On Friday morning, Baran went out of his way to make contact and intimidate our news team, before his attorney told him to stop. A pre preliminary hearing was scheduled for Friday, however it was postponed to early May.
This is because the court wants to do more research on a request by Baran's attorney for an indicated sentence. An indicated sentence is where a defendant, meaning Baran, would offer to plead guilty to all charges in exchange for a sentence issued directly by the judge.
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This usually happens over the prosecution's objection, as the district attorney could believe higher punishment is needed than what the court offers. The court has not yet given an official indicated sentence for this case.
Also, there is no plea offer in the works for Mr. Baran.
This is the case from November 2024, in which Baran was arrested alongside two other Romanians, Fernando Stantu and Mari-Mar Milica. The three were allegedly found with 48 cloned EBT cards and over $15,000 in stolen cash.
Baran is due back in court on May 5.
Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

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