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Massive Identity Theft Operation Found In The Trunk Of A Car
Trunk fraud (Photo by frankieleon via the Creative Commons on Flickr)
Police discovered a massive credit card and identity theft operation in the trunk of a stolen car in San Bernardino County today.
Much more than just junk, the trunk of the stolen vehicle contained over 100 stolen credit cards and social security cards, a computer with many more names, as well as a machine for creating more cards, according to Highland Community News. The stolen credit cards belonged to victims from Los Angeles and San Bernardino counties, and as far as Hawaii. Highland Police identified the stolen car using an Automatic License Plate (ALPR) reader and tracked it to an AM/PM convenience store in Highland this morning.
Highland Police arrested a man and woman on suspicion of operating the identity theft operation. The woman was identified as Norra Bannatt Mokhtar of San Bernardino, while the man's identity has not yet been released. The fraud operation is considered by Highland Police to be their biggest crime bust made with the help of the ALPR reader.
According to ABC7's Rob McMillan, the suspects are also accused of using an embossing machine to flatten the credit cards and add their own names to them:
Highland Police pulled over a stolen car this morning. Two suspects were arrested...but it's what was found in the trunk...
Posted by Rob McMillan on Tuesday, June 16, 2015
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