The Texas Department of Licensing & Regulation said it helped prevent upward of $5.2 million in potential losses by victims after shutting down a credit card skimming operation in the Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex.
The department arrested two Romanian citizens on Saturday after a search warrant revealed a credit card skimming factory in one of the suspects’ houses, per KXAN. The suspects were actively making skimming devices to attach to ATMs.
Officials discovered hundreds of altered credit cards, $16,000 in cash, and the equipment used to manage the factory.
The 34-year-old suspects, Petruta Camelia Ciuperca and Alexandru Constantin, have been charged with engaging in organized criminal activity, fraudulent use or possession of card information for more than 50 items, and unlawful interception of wire, oral, or electronic communications. They were booked into the Dallas County Jail, reported Fox 4 KDFW.
Ciuperca was booked with bonds totaling $120,000, and Constantin was booked with bonds totaling $76,500, as reported by CBS News. Both suspects were identified as living in the U.S. illegally and are now being held on immigration charges.
While the department managed to take down two of the suspects responsible for the credit card skimming, authorities say they are still searching for a third suspect who could be involved in the scam, per CBS News.
The Texas Department of Licensing & Regulation was assisted in this investigation by the police departments in Irving, Grand Prairie, Garland, and Euless and by U.S. Customs and Border Protection.
Special Agent Jerry Alvarez of the Texas Financial Crimes Intelligence Center said in a statement that this investigation “highlights the critical importance of collaboration among law enforcement agencies in combating financial crimes.”
“Our joint efforts have significantly disrupted an organization that posed a severe threat to individuals and businesses in Texas,” he added, as reported by KXAN.
Officials said it is unclear what compromised information those involved with the credit card skimming operation used.