Counterfeit credit card cigarette smugglers & fraudsters indicted by DOJ in North Carolina  The indictments generally allege that DIALLO, BAH, and JALLOW, were engaged in a scheme to acquire, among other things, large quantities of cigarettes in North Carolina and elsewhere using counterfeit gift and debit cards. The indictments further alleged that conspirators acquired stolen credit and debit card data from sources on the internet, and received the stolen data in the form of internet email accounts to which they had access. It is alleged that the conspirators used the stolen credit and debit card data to fraudulently re-encode cards for later use to purchase cigarettes and other items. The conspirators would generally travel from one store to another in a vehicle during a single trip to acquire a large volume of cigarettes. Other conspirators would then transport the cigarettes to other states to be resold at a profit.  justice.gov

Thieves steal phones from AT&T stores in Indianapolis, then apologize
Indianapolis Metropolitan Police are searching for a pair of thieves who stole cell phones from at least a dozen AT&T stores in central Indiana. Detective Craciunoiu says the suspects are fast and have gotten away with thefts in Indianapolis, Anderson, Greenwood and possibly Hendricks County. The thefts have all occurred during business hours, mostly after noon. "Retail dollar amount that we're looking at so far is maybe around $15,000 to $20,000," Craciunoiu said. The thieves seem to be picky about what they take. They're only stealing from AT&T stores, and they're only stealing Samsung Galaxy 5 and 6 model phones. "They're all display phones," Craciunoiu told FOX59. "And they're all phones that have been tethered by some kind of security device of some kind." The man casually approaches a display table and picks up two cell phones. In less than 5 seconds, he's able to detach the phones from the anti-theft cables they were connected to. Then, he runs out the door with employees chasing him. The suspect was in and out of the store in 23 seconds. "There's been a phrase uttered to employees," Craciunoiu said. "Something to the effect of, 'I'm sorry I have to do this, I'm just trying to feed my family.'" fox59.com

Man walks off with 22 pairs of shorts from Palm Beach Gardens store
A man walked into a store in the 3100 block of PGA Boulevard, selected 22 pairs of shorts and without trying any of them on walked out without paying. The store's loss prevention officer was able to provide police with a description of the perpetrator and the vehicle he fled in. The shorts were worth over $1,300. palmbeachpost.com

Two charged with credit card fraud over $4,000 at Wallingford, CT Wal-Mart
Two New York men accused of making over $4,000 in purchases with fraudulent credit cards at Wal-Mart appeared in court Wednesday. Idris Aliyu, 25, of Brooklyn, NY, was charged with first-degree forgery, four counts of credit card theft, third-degree larceny, two counts of third-degree identity theft, and possession of less than half an ounce of marijuana. Kayode Usman, 34, of Brooklyn, NY, was charged with third-degree larceny, conspiracy to commit third-degree larceny, and six counts of credit card theft. Police said that on April 29 Wal-Mart staff reported two men were trying to make purchases with fraudulent credit cards. Three detectives observed the men make a transaction before arresting them. myrecordjournal.com

UK: John Lewis Employee admits to $17,000 of Apple product theft from store in Cambridge  A former stock room assistant at John Lewis admitted de-frauding his employers of 11,000 pounds worth of Apple goods. Francis Chemine, of Rule Gardens, Fordham, abused his position by stealing and selling computer equipment via email during a seven-month period. The 33-year-old was caught after nearly $6,300 worth of "media equipment" was discovered in his work locker during a random check. Anthea Harris, prosecuting at Cambridge Magistrates' Court, said: "The defendant had been employed at John Lewis as a stock taker for some four years and during a routine search by staff , they found a bag with $6,300 worth of tech, all about $235 each. cambridge-news.co.uk