A traffic stop a few days ago on Interstate 75 by a sheriff's deputy has reportedly uncovered a sophisticated fraud scheme engineered by an 18-year-old.
At about 10 p.m. Tuesday, Deputy Douglas Watts noticed a four-door, 2001 Daewoo weaving from side to side as it was heading north on I-75 near County Road 484.
Thinking the driver might be impaired, the deputy stopped the vehicle, driven by Julian C. Velazquez of Georgia. The vehicle had been purchased Feb. 17, but had not been registered.
While the official was talking with Velazquez, a K-9 conducting a drug sniff alerted on the passenger side. Deputies found approximately 30 credit cards and gift cards, a Dell laptop computer and several items used for scanning credit cards.
Velazquez told officials the items were for his personal use, and that he uses the computer and the scanner to scan real credit cards to obtain information from people.
He said he then re-sells the cards with no data on them to people to "rip them off."
Velazquez, 18, was taken into custody and transported to the Marion County Jail, where he was charged with operating an unregistered motor vehicle.
On Wednesday, sheriff's officials were contacted by the young man, indicating he wanted to talk to them about the credit card equipment found in the vehicle.
Detective Erik Dice interviewed Velazquez at the jail and he told the official the laptop is attached to a card reader to copy the encoded magnetic strip from the backs of the credit cards, which are then saved as text files. He said he uses the encoding device to transfer the information from the saved credit card to another blank magnetic card.
The credit card reading equipment, he said, was purchased from China through the Internet. Velazquez told Dice the laptop and hard drive were bought with fake cards from Wal-Mart.
Once the equipment is set up, Velazquez said, he usually buys the valid cards - American Express or Visa - online, and then advertises the cards he purchases on Craig's List, mostly in the Atlanta area.
When a potential customer contacts him - usually over the phone - he sells them the original card and makes them confirm that the card is being activated over the phone.
At the completion of each transaction, Velazquez said he uses his card's copy at stores before the buyer can use their copy. He also says the items purchased by him are later returned for cash refunds.
Dice said none of the victims scammed have been from Marion County.
Velazquez told the official he does not know the exact amount he has received, but it may be a few thousand dollars.
Velazquez was re-arrested and charged with possession of a credit card making device.
The U.S. Secret Service is aware of the case.
Dice says customers need to be careful who they do business with, and to be leery of what he calls unattended devices, such as ATM machines, gas pumps and other outlets, where a card transaction is not supervised by a person.
At about 10 p.m. Tuesday, Deputy Douglas Watts noticed a four-door, 2001 Daewoo weaving from side to side as it was heading north on I-75 near County Road 484.
Thinking the driver might be impaired, the deputy stopped the vehicle, driven by Julian C. Velazquez of Georgia. The vehicle had been purchased Feb. 17, but had not been registered.
While the official was talking with Velazquez, a K-9 conducting a drug sniff alerted on the passenger side. Deputies found approximately 30 credit cards and gift cards, a Dell laptop computer and several items used for scanning credit cards.
Velazquez told officials the items were for his personal use, and that he uses the computer and the scanner to scan real credit cards to obtain information from people.
He said he then re-sells the cards with no data on them to people to "rip them off."
Velazquez, 18, was taken into custody and transported to the Marion County Jail, where he was charged with operating an unregistered motor vehicle.
On Wednesday, sheriff's officials were contacted by the young man, indicating he wanted to talk to them about the credit card equipment found in the vehicle.
Detective Erik Dice interviewed Velazquez at the jail and he told the official the laptop is attached to a card reader to copy the encoded magnetic strip from the backs of the credit cards, which are then saved as text files. He said he uses the encoding device to transfer the information from the saved credit card to another blank magnetic card.
The credit card reading equipment, he said, was purchased from China through the Internet. Velazquez told Dice the laptop and hard drive were bought with fake cards from Wal-Mart.
Once the equipment is set up, Velazquez said, he usually buys the valid cards - American Express or Visa - online, and then advertises the cards he purchases on Craig's List, mostly in the Atlanta area.
When a potential customer contacts him - usually over the phone - he sells them the original card and makes them confirm that the card is being activated over the phone.
At the completion of each transaction, Velazquez said he uses his card's copy at stores before the buyer can use their copy. He also says the items purchased by him are later returned for cash refunds.
Dice said none of the victims scammed have been from Marion County.
Velazquez told the official he does not know the exact amount he has received, but it may be a few thousand dollars.
Velazquez was re-arrested and charged with possession of a credit card making device.
The U.S. Secret Service is aware of the case.
Dice says customers need to be careful who they do business with, and to be leery of what he calls unattended devices, such as ATM machines, gas pumps and other outlets, where a card transaction is not supervised by a person.
