A few weeks ago, Liberty Police started getting calls about credit card misuse.
"We had victims from out of town, from all over this area that were being told their credit card was being used, and they in fact still had their credit card so they didn't know how it was happening.", says Detective Sergeant Tom Couche of the Liberty Township Police Department.
The common thread? A drive thru window at the McDonald's on Belmont Avenue. It turns out an employee, eighteen year old Alexandria Daniel was apparently swiping cards for more than just "Happy Meals."
"She had a small device about the size of a Bic lighter that she had either hidden on her or close by, and when the person who had paid wasn't paying attention she would turn her back long enough just to swipe the card and return the card back, and that data then was stored on the memory in that device, which was later connected to a computer, and then used to transfer the data to blank credit cards", says Sgt. Couche.
So far four people, all under the age of twenty five, have been arrested in connection with the credit theft ring that's claimed at least fifteen victims and run up more than six thousand dollars in merchandise.
"Everything from gas stations where they don't check the ID's, to Wal-Marts, to Targets."
Police are asking anyone who went through the drive thru at this McDonald's between July 20th and August 16th, and paid with a credit or debit card, to check their statements for any suspicious or fraudulent charges, Sargeant Couche says.
"When you're using that debit or that credit card, try not to lose sight of it, always see what that clerk might be doing with it, because it's that quick, it's that simple, all they gotta do is just swipe it through a little device that stores their data and now they're a victim."
Police say more arrests are coming, and ask anyone else who's been taken to call the police and file a report.
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