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Thieves use cloned debit cards at Queens ATMs to steal thousands from victims’ bank accounts

The four suspects behind a recent grand larceny pattern in Queens in which they used cloned debit cards to steal cash from ATMs.
Photo via Shutterstock/Insets courtesy of NYPD

The NYPD is battling an attack of the clones across Queens that’s costing victims a small fortune.

Police are looking for four men who used counterfeit debit cards to steal thousands of dollars from unsuspecting victims in four reported thefts last month.

Law enforcement sources said the first unauthorized withdrawal took place at noon on April 16 at the Municipal Credit Union branch located in Queens Center Mall at 90-15 Queens Blvd. in Elmhurst. The suspect used a cloned card at an ATM to withdraw $910 from a 50-year-old man’s bank account.

The second incident occurred in Brooklyn at 2 p.m. on April 16, when a second thief swiped a cloned card at an ATM inside of a Walgreens store to steal $1,200 from a 30-year-old man’s account.

Police said the third theft was reported at 5:30 p.m. on April 20, when a 54-year-old Queens man reported possible fraudulent activity against his bank account to police. Detectives determined that six days earlier, at 5 p.m. on April 14, a suspect used a cloned debit card with the man’s bank information to withdraw $600 in cash from an ATM inside the Duane Reade pharmacy located at 57-11 Myrtle Ave. in Ridgewood.

The NYPD also learned on April 20 of a similar theft in which a 75-year-0ld woman reported fraudulent activity against her account. Police determined that, on April 14, two suspects used cloned debit cards to withdraw a combined $3,300 from the victim’s account at ATMs located inside a Citibank on Myrtle Avenue in Queens and a CVS pharmacy located in Sunnyside at 41-08 Queens Blvd.

Cops described each of the four suspects as white men wearing all-black clothing.

Anyone with information regarding the suspects’ whereabouts is urged to call Crime Stoppers at 800-577-TIPS (for Spanish, dial 888-57-PISTA), visit the Crime Stoppers website or send a text message to 274637 (CRIMES), then enter TIP577. All calls and messages are kept confidential.

If you believe that your bank account was compromised by thieves, report it to your bank, then report any fraudulent activity found to your local police precinct.