Police are asking for help identifying an unknown suspect believed to be using a device that steals bank card numbers and pin codes from ATM machines in several western states to withdraw money from Vancouver-area machines.
The so-called skimming devices are attached to machines in Nevada, Idaho and Oregon, according to a bulletin issued jointly by Crime Stoppers of Oregon and the Vancouver Police Department. The suspect is believed to have placed devices in several Oregon cities, including Bend, Medford, Eugene, Cottage Grove and Lake Oswego.
The suspect, described as a white male in his 30s or 40s, with short brown hair, a mustache and goatee is using the stolen information to withdraw money from ATMs in California, Bend, Ore., and southwest Washington, according to the bulletin. The highest concentration of withdrawals have come from Vancouver, according to the bulletin.
The small devices read and store card numbers and PIN numbers. The thieves retrieve the information and make duplicate cards, which they use elsewhere. Victims don’t know they’ve been ripped off until money starts disappearing from their accounts.
