Three men from Latvia have been arrested in Texas, suspected of being involved in a large-scale high-tech fraud scheme related to the theft of gift cards. According to investigators, the damage caused amounts to nearly $14 million, foreign media report.
The suspects are accused of committing crimes in several cities across the U.S. before they were apprehended in Texas.
"These people were in the country illegally and arrived with the intent to commit crimes," said FCIC Director Adam Colby.
The suspects told investigators that they stole gift cards from about ten stores every day, seven days a week, and had been doing this since May.
"They were stealing gift cards off the shelves of various retail stores," Colby said. He noted that initially, the stolen cards have no value, but the men acted in a particularly sophisticated manner.
After the theft, the cards were taken to another location where the packaging was carefully opened. The protective layer covering the unique activation codes was removed from the cards.
"The code was scanned and entered into a special program used by criminals. This program allows tracking the status of the card," Colby explained.
Then the cards were carefully placed back into the packaging to look new and returned to the store shelves. Once a customer purchased the card and activated it, the criminals were notified and could immediately transfer the money to other cards or use the funds to buy expensive items.
Authorities noted that over 400 gift cards were found in the possession of the suspects at the time of their arrest.
The group is accused of fraudulent activity in several cities across the U.S., including Austin, Dallas–Fort Worth, Houston, and San Antonio.
