Money laundering duo bought $70,000 in gift cards in 3 days
Employees at a Massachusetts Walmart store identified a pattern of activity that led to police arresting two people accused in an interstate gift card scheme. Benjin Zhu, 26, of New York, and Jia Wu, 25, of Pennsylvania, were seen Wednesday buying hundreds of gift cards in the Walmart location on Hartford Avenue in Bellingham, police said. An asset protection associate recognized their activity as similar to recent scams. The associate could see that the gift cards being used by Zhu and Wu were bought in Ohio, New York and South Carolina just a few hours earlier. Police responded and found out that the duo possessed nearly 2,000 gift cards and over 50 cases of baby formula, which is known to be a frequently stolen product. At that point, officers arrested Zhu and Wu. Additional investigation revealed that Zhu and Wu had purchased 1,100 gift cards worth over $70,000 from stores in New York, Connecticut and Massachusetts in three days, police said. Most of those cards had already been emptied of their value. Zhu and Wu were charged with two counts of receiving stolen property, aggravated shoplifting by organized retail theft and money laundering. They were arraigned and released on bail. Bellingham police said they are continuing investigating and will try to return stolen funds to victims throughout the country. [Source: WCVB5 News]
NY man fled mall with $20,000 in stolen jewelry [Viral Video]
Nassau County police in New York are investigating the theft of $20,000 in jewelry from a store in the Roosevelt Field mall. Employees at Markens Jewelers, located at 630 Old Country Rd. in Garden City, were in the process of making a sale on Friday at 9:19 p.m. when a man grabbed a ring and earrings from a sales representative and ran away, police said Sunday night in a news release. An employee chased after the man to an exit on the northeast side of the mall, the release said. The man got into a white Nissan Sentra. The suspect is described as about 6 feet tall and weighing about 190 pounds, the release said. He was wearing a green knit hat, blue jeans and a black and white jacket. A surveillance camera in the jewelry store filmed the theft. Detectives request anyone with information call Crime Stoppers at 800-244-TIPS. All callers will remain anonymous. [Source: Newsday]
Bill would outlaw credit card skimming devices
Pennsylvania lawmakers are advancing a bill that could curb the use of skimming devices to illegally obtain credit card numbers. Last week, the state House of Representatives unanimously passed a bill that would make it illegal to use skimming devices to steal credit card information. Such devices have been widely used by criminals to obtain consumers’ credit card data for theft and fraud. Typically, authorities prosecute such cases under theft and fraud laws but there is no state law to prevent anyone from owning such skimming devices. State Rep. Kristin Phillips-Hill, a York County Republican, sponsored the bill and hopes it will cut down on fraud. “People who question the need for this legislation are shocked to find it’s perfectly legal to own one of these skimming devices, which have no purpose other than to steal personal information and use it for conducting illegal transactions,” Phillips-Hill said in a statement. “We’re simply closing a loophole that contributes to the excessive number of identity theft cases that exist statewide.” Phillips-Hill said she’s grateful for the bipartisan support for the bill. Within a month of her introducing the bill, the House approved the measure. That’s an unusually swift passage for a bill in the General Assembly. The measure now moves to the state Senate. Phillips-Hill said she is hoping Gov. Tom Wolf will soon see the bill on his desk and sign it. [Source: Reading Eagle]
Four arrested after department store theft; crash with deputies
Two adults and two minors were arrested with more than $4,000 worth of property stolen from a department store in Rancho Cucamonga, California, after their vehicle crashed into a patrol car attempting to stop them, the San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Department said. The incident happened just after 7 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 2, at the Macy’s in Victoria Gardens when deputies and the mall theft team converged on the exits and saw Torriyon Willliams, Clintoneisha Brown, a 13-year-old boy and a 15-year-old boy leave with stolen merchandise, a news release said. The four got in a car, and Williams, the driver, failed to stop for oncoming patrol cars, ramming one car’s rear passenger door, the release said. Additional deputies prevented the suspects from driving away. Williams, 23, of Victorville, and Brown, 21, of Pasadena, were arrested on suspicion of commercial burglary, grand theft, child endangerment and conspiracy. Williams also was accused of assault with a deadly weapon. The juveniles were released to their guardians. Deputies ask anyone with information on the case to call the Rancho Cucamonga station at 909-477-2800. Those wishing to remain anonymous may contact the We-Tip Hotline at 800-782-7463 or wetip.com. [Source: Daily Bulletin]
American Express is getting rid of signatures for credit card purchases
American Express has announced that it will no longer require signatures for credit card purchases beginning in April 2018, joining Discover and MasterCard, which have also announced similar changes. According to Jaromir Divilek, an executive VP at American Express, the company is making the change because its “fraud capabilities have advanced so that signatures are no longer necessary to fight fraud.” The company also cites advances in contactless payments, the explosion of popularity in online shopping, and the buzzword-citing use of “advanced machine learning algorithms” to help prevent fraud more efficiently than comparing a signature. Unlike other card companies, American Express is doing away with signatures globally, instead of just in the US. For comparison, current American Express policy is that customers don’t have to sign for purchases under $50 in the US, under $100 CAD in Canada, or under £30 in the UK. Now that American Express is getting rid of signatures at checkout, which just leaves Visa as the last major US card company that has yet to announce a similar change. [Source: The Verge]
Woman identified in baby formula theft
Deputies say thanks to anonymous tips, they are able to identify the woman seen on surveillance video, stealing over $300 worth of baby formula from a Lee County Publix. According to Southwest Florida Crime Stoppers, it happened at the store on Paul J. Doherty Parkway on Tuesday, November 28th. They say Samantha Beausoleil initially left the store, but returned a short time later, and this time a loss prevention associate spotted the woman loading cans of baby formula from the shelves and into her purse. The associate followed Beausoleil out of the store and attempted to detain her, however she quickly sped off in a blue Chevy four door sedan before the employee could retrieve the stolen goods. Deputies say Beausoleil is also wanted in connection to a series of thefts at the Home Depot on NE Pine Island Road in Cape Coral. She was arrested in 2016 for aggravated assault with a deadly weapon and recently in October for grand theft in Lehigh Acres. Anyone with information on Beausoleil’s whereabouts is asked to call Crime Stoppers at 1-800-780-TIPS (8477). All callers will remain anonymous and will be eligible for a cash reward of up to $1,000. Tips may also be made online at Crime Stoppers or by submitting a tip on the P3Tips mobile app. [Source: Fox4 Now]
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