Norwalk PD Helped Take Down Credit Card Scammer: U.S. Attorney

A 45-year-old Amityville, NY woman pleaded guilty in federal court in Hartford on Tuesday to fraud and identity theft offenses in connection with credit card fraud scheme, announced United States Attorney John H. Durham.

Between February 2015 and January 2017, Lisa Reid "was involved in a scheme to defraud credit card companies and their customers by fraudulently taking over credit card accounts and, using those accounts, making unauthorized purchases from high-end retailers," according to Durham and court documents and statements.

Reid stole at least $1 million worth of merchandise through the scheme, and nearly stole another $4 million worth but was thwarted by authorities and credit card companies that eventually caught up with her.

The case was investigated by the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, Greenwich Police Department and Connecticut Financial Crimes Task Force, which also includes the U.S. Secret Service, Internal Revenue Service, Connecticut State Police and the Shelton, Stamford, Hartford, and Norwalk Police Departments.

From Durham's release:

Specifically, Reid used publicly available information to obtain phone numbers for wealthy senior citizens. She then called her victims pretending to be a representative of a credit card company and claiming that the company needed information about the victim's account. The victims then provided Reid with their account information, including credit card numbers and passwords. Reid then contacted the credit card company, pretending to be the victim. After providing all of the requested security information, she added a new phone number and address to the account. The address was typically an abandoned or foreclosed property near her home in New York. Reid then used the compromised credit card accounts to order merchandise from high-end retailers and had the merchandise shipped to an address that she had previously added to the credit card account. After Reid, or a "runner," retrieved the merchandise, she sold it at a pawnshop or to another individual.

Through this scheme, Reid stole the identities of more than 50 individuals and used their credit card information to purchase more than $1 million in merchandise. Victim credit card companies successfully thwarted approximately $3.8 million worth of Reid's attempted purchases.

Reid pleaded guilty to one count of mail fraud, an offense that carries a maximum prison term of 20 years, and one count of aggravated identity theft, an offense that carries a mandatory consecutive prison term of two years.

A sentencing date has not been scheduled, but Reid, who was arrested in February 2017, remains in custody.
That arrest was not Reid's first. In October 2010, she was convicted in the Eastern District of Kentucky of federal bank fraud and aggravated identity theft offenses, and was sentenced to 27 months of imprisonment and five years of supervised release. The convictions stemmed from a similar credit card takeover scheme that also defrauded victims of approximately $1 million, according to Durham.

Reid, who was on supervised release while engaged in her most recent criminal conduct, faces an additional term of imprisonment if she is found to have violated the conditions of her supervised release.

In addition to the above listed law enforcement agencies, the U.S. Marshals Service also assisted with the investigation.

This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney U.S. Attorney John T. Pierpont, Jr.

Image via Shutterstock