Fraudsters Jailed Regarding Credit Card Factory
Perhaps consumers can hope that the government is now beginning to get a little tougher where credit card fraud is concerned. Three brothers have now been jailed regarding their credit card factory. They are getting a total of 12 years for making credit and debit cards. They pleaded guilty in front of the Southwark Crown Court for the conspiracy to defraud.
Police were searching an office space in Brent. They were with the specialist credit fraud squad. They found evidence that the room was being used as a factory. During the search Mahmoud Charmaga, one of the brothers entered the building. He was arrested on the spot and his home was later searched. At the home a laptop and documents were found in his brother’s room regarding credit card theft.
The laptop had several credit card details on it with a reader/ writer, card skimmers, and fake ATM fronts. They also found keypads for stealing pins, and embossing press for making cards. Total the police found 600 counterfeit cards. Ahmed Charmaga, the third brother, was found to have rented the business office under a false name.
The cards had been used to purchase designer clothing, aftershaves, and to withdraw cash from the UK and international ATM’s. Ahmed Charmaga is 25. He received 4 and a half years of prison on top of a two year sentence. Mahmoud, 23, received 5 years, and Mohammed, 28, was given 2 years and 8 months of prison. All this totals 12 years if you look at it as a combined amount. Unfortunately the sentences for each are not very long. So, while the government is finding more fraudsters, they are still not being tough on the sentences. Most criminals who get a few years get out for parole, and go right back to being fraudsters.
The fake cards were used to make purchases and withdrawals from ATMs – worth over £1 million in countries where Chip and PIN is not used, including Thailand.They found equipment used to produce fake credit cards, including magnetic strip cards capable of being re-written with skimmed data, lists of data annotated with PIN numbers and payments terminals.