Fourth person charged in credit card fraud scheme

In early January a woman reported her credit card information had been used to make more than $1,700 in purchases at Big Lots on Dec. 22, the same day she had used her card at a restaurant. A Wyomissing police investigation led to the arrests of four people, including a 22-year-old Shillington woman who was charged Feb. 17.

Wyomissing police Chief Jeffery Biehl said all four suspects knew each other. The main suspect was a waitress who initially got the victim’s credit card information. She then passed it on to the other suspects, all of whom knew each other, Biehl said. While the initial large purchases made Dec. 22 initially got the attention of police, Biehl said, most of the other transactions were for smaller purchases of $15 to $20.

He added that all of the fraudulent purchases, which involved six other victims, took place over the course of a few days.

The people who have been charged are:

• An 18-year-old Reading woman: 16 counts, access device fraud; eight counts, criminal conspiracy; charged Jan. 29. She was released pending a preliminary hearing next month.
• A 19-year-old Reading woman: two counts each, access device fraud and criminal conspiracy; one count, theft by deception; charged Jan. 14. She was released Jan. 15 on $10,000 bail and waived her preliminary hearing Jan. 25.
• A 21-year-old Shillington woman: one count each, access device fraud and criminal conspiracy; charged Jan. 28. She was released pending a preliminary hearing next month.
• A 22-year-old Shillington woman; nine counts, access device fraud; nine counts, criminal conspiracy to commit access device fraud; charged Feb. 17. Her preliminary hearing is scheduled for March.