Five people from Florida were arrested in Mississippi for using stolen debit and credit card information, according to a release from law enforcement.
Deputies with the Rankin County Sheriff’s Office were notified of a male subject traveling on a scooter in Pearl and stopping at various ATMs, allegedly using stolen information to withdraw cash.
“While conducting surveillance of the area, investigators with the sheriff’s office noted a black male riding a scooter back and forth from a nearby hotel to the ATM to conduct the transactions,” the release noted.
After obtaining search warrants, investigators conducted an operation on Thursday that resulted in five individuals being arrested at the hotel in question. Investigators also recovered multiple Visa gift cards, a credit/debit card encoding machine, and approximately $5,700.
The individuals were identified as Caesar Allen, Lashuntavia Dequanna Mathis, Takya Princess Mathis, Gary Louis Coley, and James Williams. All the individuals, who are from Florida, were with multiple felonies related to the fraudulent transactions.
“It is believed that the individuals were utilizing the encoder to imprint stolen debit card information onto the gift cards, then use them to withdraw the U.S. currency from the ATM,” the release continued. “The Rankin County Sheriff’s Office would like to express its appreciation to the Pearl Police Department for their assistance in this incident.”
The five suspects are currently being held without bond at the Rankin County Detention Center and awaiting initial court appearances. The investigation into the matter continues with further arrests and charges possible.
