September 11, 2009
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News: International CC Scammers Go To Jail
A methamphetamine addict from Sacramento, California pleaded guilty to credit card which he used to support his habit. Tien Truong Nguyen pleaded guilty to fraud and identity theft charges for his role in a major international scam targeting Wal-Mart and GE Capital. According to prosecutors, Nguyen, who has three previous felony convictions, designed several phishing web sites to steal personal information of unsuspecting victims and then sold their information to two credit card theft criminals. The two alleged co-conspirators, Stefani Ruland and Ryan Price, used the information to open up Wal-Mart instant credit card accounts throughout California. The two used the site of GE Capital to run credit checks and if approved, immediately provides an instant credit coupons were between $1,000 and $2,000. The coupons can be used in any Wal-Mart store.
The scam was uncovered by a Wal-Mart investigator discovered the illegal credit card activities back in September 2006 after receiving information of suspicious activity and possible stolen goods in Ruland and Price's possession. According to court documents, Nguyen met Ruland and Price over the internet where he swapped the stolen credit card information for methamphetamine. In his statement, Nguyen indicated that he didn't like contributing to identity theft but his methamphetamine habit motivated him to continue with his illegal activities. Many of his victims were users of PayPal who were scammed by fake emails or pop-up windows.
When authorities arrested Nguyen, they found a variety of evidence on his computer linking him to the crimes and sealing his fate, including over ten thousand stolen credit card numbers, bank account numbers, and other personal information of the victims. Additionally, authorities also found a number of templates used for setting up fake websites targeting eBay and a number of financial institutions. Together the three racked up nearly $200,000 in fraudulent activities in just under a two month period. Currently Ruland is serving his sentence in prison and Price is awaiting trial. Nguyen sentencing hearing is set for November 19th.