News

Thieves use counterfeit debit cards to steal thousands

February 21, 2012

Two or possibly three unidentified men in Tampa, Fla., stole thousands of dollars from bank accounts using fake ATM cards, according to a news story at myfoxtampabay.

Police said the thieves used ATMs at four different Tampa banks on Jan. 22. One of the men stood at a Bank of America machine in downtown Tampa on Jan. 22 for up to 30 minutes using one card after another. Each time, the suspect withdrew the maximum amount of money allowed.

Police have talked to three victims so far and are trying to pinpoint the business where the PINs and card numbers were skimmed. "[The victims] use their cards frequently, so it was tough to actually nail it down to which business it was, but it's possibly one of the gas stations," a police spokesman said.

Denise Barnett of Odessa, Fla., suspects that's how it happened to her. "There were several purchases that were being made on it. I didn't realize that until I received my statement, then I found out that they tried to buy a car," she said. 

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