- Card skimming is extremely rare in the City of Neenah, but from October 17-24, some Prospera Credit Union customers were victims of this kind of crime.
- Card skimming involves a device that will scan the magnetic strip of your card when you try to use a card reader. Usually, a hidden camera will be paired with the device to capture users' PIN numbers.
- A 28-year-old Romanian man has been charged in this crime. His preliminary hearing is currently set for next week.
(The following is a transcription of the full broadcast story)
If you go to put your debit card into your ATM and it seems harder to insert than usual, don't ignore that warning sign.
I'm your Neenah Neighborhood Reporter Darby McCarthy with more on a card skimming crime in the area.
“If you pay attention to the machine, you might be able to see, but they're made to make it so that it's hard to detect them.”
If you are a Prospera Credit Union client in Neenah or Menasha, you may have gotten an upsetting call recently.
“We discovered skimming devices on three of our ATMs”
It happened at various times between October 17 and October 24.
Some Prospera Credit Union customers' card information was compromised by a device called a card skimmer.
“A skimming device is something that somebody is putting on to any kind of card reader – It doesn't have to be an ATM – that is used for the purpose of taking card numbers and PIN numbers.”
According to a Winnebago County criminal complaint, a 28-year-old Romanian man whose ID named him Micea Caran was seen on security footage inserting this device into some of their ATMs.
The complaint also states that video shows Caran was joined by a 13-year-old boy who the complaint states has family in Dallas, TX, but he came to Wisconsin "to hang out with some girls."
According to the complaint, when police searched Caran at the time of his arrest, they found pliers, a surveillance camera box, $1630 in U.S. currency, 16 Visa cards, and four receipts for denied transactions.
We requested the video footage from Prospera, but they have not been able to respond to that request at this time. However, they did say all affected cardholders were contacted.
“We were lucky that the number of unauthorized transactions was really, really low.”
Police say crimes using this kind of device are rare in this area
A Neenah Police Department crime analyst says there are no records of other cases involving skimming devices in Neenah, but to make sure this doesn't happen to you, Prospera Marketing Director Crista Gordon says to pay attention to your surroundings.
“Look for well-lit ATMs, pay attention to the machine itself. You know, does something seem off?"
If something seems off, Gordon says don't use it. Also, cover the PIN pad when entering your numbers to protect them from hidden cameras, which the criminal complaint states were used in this case.
As for Caran, his preliminary hearing is currently set for next week.
