Two men will appear in court today to answer a total of 42 charges arising out of an Automatic Teller Machine (ATM) skimming scam discovered on July 6. The men were arrested on July 10, and following painstaking enquiries by officers of the Fraud Squad led by Supt Vincel Edwards and ASP Gary Edwards, the charges were laid yesterday afternoon by Sgt Andy Williams.
The suspects, a 24-year-old mechanic and an 18-year-old backhoe operator, are both from Madras Road, St Helena Village, Piarco. The men are jointly charged with 21 counts of engaging in the fraudulent use of an ATM card under the Electronic Transfer of Funds Act and 21 counts of access with intent to commit or facilitate the commission of an offence under the Computer Misuse Act.
The arrest came three days after the scam was discovered, when customers attempted to access an ATM in central Trinidad and realised their cards may have been compromised. As news spread that the perpetrators might be using sensitive information to gain access to cardholders' accounts and steal money, panic spread as the banking officials confirmed that an investigation had been launched into the incident.
Working along with the Fraud Squad and the police Cyber Crimes Unit, the Bankers' Association released pictures of six men via Crime Stoppers, in a bid to get the public's support to stop the perpetrators. Officers of the Fraud Squad who also assisted in the investigation included Insp Brian Marcelle and Cpl Addison Kistow. Officials yesterday said the men had committed the offences at ATMs in Port-of-Spain, Sangre Grande, Chaguanas and Tunapuna.
