Police warn of ATM scam in suburbs

Police throughout the suburbs are on the hunt for a tech-savvy thief who is rigging ATMs to swipe unsuspecting customers’ cash.

Addison detective Gregg Garofalo said the unidentified man affixes an electronic skimming device on automated teller machines to secretly snatch account information, then later makes withdrawals with the fraudulent cards he created.

So far, police suspect the criminal made unauthorized withdrawals at banks in Addison, Crystal Lake and Elk Grove Village. Similar crimes were reported last year in Buffalo Grove and Mount Prospect.

Garofalo released bank surveillance photos this week to try to identify his suspect, who made off with thousands since at least October, when detectives first began tracking him.

The skimming gadgets are tough to spot, experts warn, as they are designed to duplicate the actual ATM card reader and are installed in a matter of seconds right on top of the real thing. It’s attached by either a magnet or double-stick tape, but easily comes off if a customer checks before using the machine.

The device electronically records a customer’s debit-card number, and a small camera – which the thief posts nearby – records the ATM keyboard as the patron enters his password. The thief often is not far away, waiting to retrieve the data and transfer it to a fraudulent card.

Garofalo said the unidentified man recently made 17 fraudulent transactions within 14 minutes in Elk Grove Village.

“The victim usually finds out after they check their bank statement and notice the unauthorized withdrawal,” Garofalo said. “The victim never loses their debit card and does not know how this person got their information.”

Though Garofalo’s suspect hits banks, similar skimming scams are more typically carried out in obscure locations such as airports, convenience stores, gas stations, parking garages and other isolated spots where free-standing ATMs are installed.

“(Skimming devices) are hard to get a hold of and usually are expensive,” said Todd Carroll, a supervisory special agent for the FBI’s cyber squad in Chicago.

“Because they want to retrieve it, they’re going to put it someplace where they can make a good getaway. That’s more likely (in nonbank settings) where there’s less traffic and no surveillance cameras.”

Other recent examples of similar scams also are under investigation.

On Nov. 14, police said more than $70,000 was stolen from a bank ATM in Buffalo Grove. The bank’s security video recorded two suspects placing a camera and recording device on the ATM inside the lobby of the bank.

The same suspects returned two days later to retrieve the device, police said.

In Mount Prospect, thieves made off with nearly $21,000 from 316 debit card accounts after installing a skimmer last fall on a drive-up ATM at Bank of America.

Addison police, meanwhile, described their suspect as a black man, approximately 30 to 35 years old, who is always photographed wearing a white hat and sunglasses.

Anyone with information is urged to call Garofalo at (630) 543-3080, ext. 7361.

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