V.I. Police Department Assistant Commissioner Thomas Hannah urged persons who have been victims of credit card fraud to make a police report at their nearest police station.
“We understand there have been a number of persons on St. Thomas, St. John and St. Croix who have experienced credit card fraud, but our reports do not reflect that trend,” Hannah said in a prepared statement issued by VIPD. “It is imperative that once a victim notifies their banking institution, the next step is to make a formal report to the proper authority, which is the police department or the Attorney General’s office.”
Contrary to at least one published report, VIPD follows specific protocol when investigating fraud cases, explained Hannah.
“In the last three months the VIPD has received a minimal number of credit card fraud reports, but we know the problem is more wide spread,” he said.
Once a report is received, VIPD’s Insular Investigation Unit contacts the victim’s bank and, on a case by case basis, reaches out to other local and federal agencies, during the course of the investigation.
V.I. Department of Justice Special Investigator James McCall often collaborates with the Police Department in these investigations. McCall assured the public that investigations into credit card fraud “are not dormant.”
McCall told victims is to call authorities “as soon as it [fraud] happens.”
Frauds have lately been originating mainly in Florida but can happen anywhere, and locals may be more susceptible to being defrauded using their credit cards at various bars and restaurants on the islands, according to McCall.
There can be various scams circulating in the Virgin Islands at any given time, McCall added.
The first line of defense against fraud is to identify suspicious charges immediately, he explained. Check banks balances daily and report any unauthorized charges to your bank and to law enforcement.
Talk about credit card fraud began months ago and has steadily increased. Discussions of credit card fraud began appearing on social media sites last month with more and more St. John and St. Thomas residents being targeted.
Reported victims include customers of FirstBank VI, BancoPopular, Merchant’s Commercial Bank, ScotiaBank, Bank of St. Croix and Bank of America. Many of the victims reported having been at restaurants, a gas station and an ATM machine all in Red Hook before learning that their accounts were hacked, but there have been cases of fraud reported on St. Croix and St. John as well.
Victims have been hit with charges ranging from $20 and less to thousands of dollars with compromised cards being used for purchases in locations from St. Thomas to New York City and even Africa and the United Arab Emirates.
Credit Cards Compromised in Red Hook
“There are tons of people whose cards seem to have been compromised in Red Hook,” said a St. Thomas resident. “And the cards are being used for purchases in NY, Europe, St. Thomas and other places, so these people may actually be smart enough to sell the card information on the black market instead of trying to clone the cards themselves.”
“I have two friends who were on vacation down here and when they got back to Boston, the same thing happened to them,” said a St. John resident. “It has happened to at least eight people confirmed that I know. Some of them had their accounts compromised and some had their accounts cleaned out. For me it was both my credit card and my Bank of America debit card. A woman in Uruguay tried to charge $426 on my card.”
“My wife’s card got hit two days ago right as we ate in Red Hook,” said another St. John resident. “I keep my cards in a brass card holder, but she didn’t. She’s been checking our accounts every couple of hours since this started weeks ago, so she caught it after only $200 had been charged at a Dillards in Louisiana. I had friends meet us for dinner last night; all 10 were locals on St. Thomas and all 10 had their cards hit.”
Some victims were targeted back in June while others were hit in late July.
“My card was hit this afternoon,” said a St. John resident in late July. “I got a call from Merchant’s Bank about a $319 charge at a liquor store in New York City. They instantly canceled my card and I have to go and fill out paperwork for a new one.”
“While I was sitting at a BBQ and talking about my card being hit today, a friend on St. Thomas got an email that his credit card had been hit for fraud,” said the resident. “This is absolutely ridiculous.”
VIPD Insular Investigation Unit detectives said they are investigating a few cases of cell phone and phone card scams where the “con artists” pretend to be a family member with personal details, according to the press release issued by the department.
VIPD Insular Investigation Unit detectives are also investigating a few cases of cell phone and phone card scams. The “con artists” pretend to be a family member with personal details of a relationship.
They say they have been hurt, lost their possessions and cell phone and asks for phone cards so they can contact family members. After spending hundreds of dollars in phone cards, the victim discovers it is a hoax.
Anyone who receives a phone call saying that a relative or close friend is in trouble or hurt; should try not to let emotions and sympathy for the person overcome common sense. Ask the person for a phone number to contact them, or an address to verify the information. Also attempt to contact the person at their regular cell phone or land line and contact their family and find out the status of the person before sending any money.
This scenario, however, does not reflect what numerous victims have described as their experiences with credit and debit card fraud occurring after they used their cards at restaurants, gas stations and ATM machines.
Some people have suggested the criminals might be using a credit card skimmer, a portable device which can be attached to a credit card machine, a gas pump or an ATM machine. The skimmer passively reads someone’s card data as the real card machine is working.
VIPD St. Thomas/St. John District Chief Darren Foy said the effects of widespread fraud can be detrimental to the community.
“The Virgin Islands is a small community that can be adversely affected economically and socially because of the uncertainty of being a victim of credit card fraud,” said Foy. “The VIPD encourages you to report all telephonic scams, social media scams, and credit card/debit card fraud that you may have information about.”
To report a scam call VIPD on St. Thomas/St. John at 774-2211 and on St. Croix at 778-2211. Victims can also call 911 or Crime Stoppers USVI at 1-800-222-TIPS.
