Massive forged credit card racket unravelled

Forged cards used at filling stations:

Sandasen Marasinghe

The Criminal Investigation Department (CID) busted an organized ring involved in manufacturing forged credit and debit cards using the details of the original cards they had hacked in Sri Lanka and abroad.

According to the CID the group had prepared forged electronic cards in Sri Lanka and the suspects were said to have had overseas racketeers involved in the counterfeit racket.

The CID has arrested four persons involved in the racket and seized over 15 fraudulent bank electronic cards, an electronic machine used to feed data into these credit and debit cards power codes, computers used to store hacked data of the credit cards and several other tools used.

Police Spokesman SP Prishantha Jayakody told the Daily News that CID investigations revealed that the suspects had fraudulently withdrawn over Rs 12 million from leading private banks in Sri Lanka using the forged credit cards.

Police said the CID following complaints made by the Electronic Card Centre managers of three leading banks arrested a suspect at a filling station in Ratmalana who used a forged electronic bank card on April 8. He had six other forged electronic cards, a dongle and a passport in his possession. Following interrogation, the CID found some of the machines used in preparing forged cards in his home in Trincomalee.

The Police said that the CID arrested another person also a resident of Trincomalee who was allegedly involved in the racket while, he was hiding at Kalawanchikudi. The CID later arrested two other suspects in Beruwela who aided and abetted on the counterfeit business.

SP Jayakody said that the CID revealed the suspects had mostly used these forged bank electronic cards at filling stations. He added that the suspects on most occasions had withdrawn money at filling stations using the cards instead of paying cash. He also said the suspects had given a ‘cut’ to pump attendants at the filling stations.

The Police spokesman also said that the CID is yet to ascertain the total sum defrauded by the suspects. The CID is conducting further investigations to find out as to how much money they have withdrawn in this manner and who else may be involved in the racket.