The New York City Police Department is asking for the public’s assistance in locating two (2) male suspects wanted in connection with twenty (20) grand larcenies that occurred in Brooklyn and Queens within the confines of the 63rd, 66th, 68th, 71st, 79th, 90th, 102nd, 107th and 112th Precincts between Thursday, April 16, 2015 and Monday, June 15, 2015.
The suspects install skimmer card-reading devices inside ATM bank locations and subsequently produce fraudulent debit cards allowing them to make withdrawals from victims’ bank accounts.
Anyone with information is asked to call Crime Stoppers at (800) 577-TIPS (8477). The public can also submit their tips by logging onto Crime Stoppers’ website at www.nypdcrimestoppers.com or by texting their tips to CRIMES (274637), then enter TIP577.
Skimmers are devices attached to ATMs or credit card processing devices to steal the credit card and PIN numbers of customers. ATMs and open point-of-sale terminals, such as gas pumps, are targets for criminals, ranging from local thieves to international crime syndicates.
The credit scoring company FICO estimates about 30 percent of all credit card fraud happens at point-of-sale locations such as gas pumps. Government and private research sources indicate that the cost to consumers of point-of-sale card fraud is between $3 billion and $6 billion a year. This spring, a mass inspection of more than 7,500 gas stations in Florida found 103 credit card skimmers in use.
