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Fake credit cards in circulation

The RCMP is warning merchants to be on the lookout for fake credit cards following a vehicle rollover near Ernfold, SK, a village approximately 75 kilometres east of Swift Current on Hwy 1.
Fake Credit Cards

The RCMP is warning merchants to be on the lookout for fake credit cards following a vehicle rollover near Ernfold, SK, a village approximately 75 kilometres east of Swift Current on Hwy 1.

On March 21 Morse RCMP responded to the single vehicle rollover. A 2004 Dodge Durango was traveling eastbound when it entered the center median ditch and rolled, coming to rest upright on its wheels. Two occupants were taken to hospital in Herbert and have since been released.

While investigating the accident, police found and seized a suspected firearm and seven grams of crystal methamphetamine. A subsequent search after obtaining a search warrant turned up 30 altered gift cards, computers, two grams of cocaine and drug paraphernalia.

The majority of the cards seized were Visa and MasterCard gift cards with the real numbers sanded off along with the amount of the gift card. The makers of the cards embossed stolen credit card numbers onto the cards as well as expiry dates and customer name (either “preferred customer” or the suspect’s name). The cards have no magnetic stripe data so merchants would have to manually enter the numbers to finalize the sale.

The RCMP said there are many warning signs that the cards had been tampered with such as the screen printed first four digits did not match the embossed numbers and some had the last four digits on the signature strip that did not match either.

“It is suggested that merchants who manually enter the numbers be very cognizant of what they are doing and to examine the card being used very carefully,” a press release stated. “The cards are not good quality forgeries and can be easily identified. If you feel a card has been compromised a different form of payment can be asked for. If a merchant manually enters a fraudulent credit card number at the point of sale the amount of the purchase is generally charged back to them by the credit card companies.”

The three occupants of the vehicle, all from Calgary are charged with possession of a controlled substance and are scheduled to appear in Swift Current Provincial Court on June 15. Further charges are pending in relation to the gift cards and cocaine, police said.