Santa Barbara Police are looking for four suspects who stole debit card information from an ATM machine at a local bank.
The Santa Barbara Police Department received nearly a dozen reports of fraudulent ATM withdrawals originating from the Bank of America branch at 3790 State Street in the City of Santa Barbara.
Detectives discovered the crime occured over a two week period, beginning on July 14th. Customers' information were likely stolen using a concealed “skimming” device, according to investigators. The suspects proceeded to withdraw thousands of dollars from the victims’ accounts using the same ATMs where the debit card information was stolen.
The suspects typically operated during early morning hours, and occasionally used ATM alongside legitimate customers. People using California Employment Development Department (EDD) debit cards were primarily affected as EDD cards are generally not issued with EMV security chips.
Due to the duration of the crime spree and the early morning hours of the withdrawals, detectives believe the ATM skimmer crew may have stayed at a local hotel. Anyone with information about the suspects in these photographs are encouraged to contact Detective Kyle Rapp at 805-897-2331 or krapp@sbpd.com
SBPD is encouraging residents to protect their banking information:
- Do not use ATM’s or credit card terminals that appear altered or damaged.
- Immediately report any fraud to your banking institution.
- It is safer to make cash withdrawals in-person, rather than at an ATM.
