WASHINGTON — Fairfax County police seized 87 fraudulent credit cards from three men Sunday at Tysons Corner Center in Virginia, and police say the men were prepared to make more.
After an employee at the shopping center notified authorities of suspected credit card fraud, Fairfax County Police Department’s Tysons Urban Team arrested three men.
The suspects had several items used in the manufacturing of fraudulent credit cards and identification cards, said Fairfax County police spokesman Don Gotthardt.
Deandre Perry, Taquarrius Jones and De Quan Carroll were charged with counts including credit card forgery, credit card larceny, identification theft and possession of marijuana.
Speaking in general about how cards are fraudulently obtained and created, Gotthardt said that in some cases, stolen card information is cloned, while in other cases, accounts are created by criminals.
“They have obtained blank cards, and these devices they have are apparently able to imprint numbers and things like that,” Gotthardt said.
Gotthardt said in years past, teams of suspects have come from other areas, including New York and Pennsylvania, “simply because of the population density and the target-rich environment in places like Tysons and other shopping centers.”
Even with increased security, including chip technology, Gotthardt said determined criminals are sometimes able to create and use a fraudulent card quickly and successfully.
“Before the fraud is actually detected, they’ve made their escape.”
