United States Attorney Richard B. Roper
Northern District of Texas

TARRANT COUNTY MAN ADMITS ROLE IN CREDIT CARD FRAUD
“SKIMMING” CASE

FORT WORTH, Tx. — A local man who admitted purchasing credit card account information that had been “skimmed” from restaurant customers, pled guilty yesterday in federal court, announced U.S. Attorney Richard B. Roper. Dung Ba Nguyen, 28, of North Richland Hills, Texas, pled guilty before U.S. District Judge Terry R. Means to an Information charging one count of fraud in connection with access devices. Nguyen admitted having more than 100 credit card and account numbers stored on his personal “thumb drive.” He faces a maximum statutory sentence of 10 years in prison, a $250,000 fine, and restitution. He is scheduled to be sentenced by Judge Means on January 14, 2008.

The account numbers were stolen by a method known as “skimming.” Specifically, individuals working at North Texas restaurants used a small hand-held device, known as a “skimmer,” to read and record account numbers and other account information from the magnetic strips on the backs of restaurant customers’ credit cards and debit cards.

Nguyen then used the stolen account numbers by encoding them onto the magnetic strips of his own credit cards and then making purchases with the cards. In this way, although Nguyen appeared to be making charges against his own accounts, he was actually making charges against the accounts associated with the stolen account numbers. Nguyen purchased expensive items, such as electronics, that he could then sell for cash.

U.S. Attorney Roper praised the investigative efforts of the U.S. Secret Service and the Euless, Arlington, Haltom City, Bedford, Plano and North Richland Hills, Texas, Police Departments. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Alan Buie.

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