Two Jordanians arrested for alleged theft of JD60,000 via forged ATM cards

AMMAN — Police on Tuesday announced the arrest of two Jordanians for allegedly stealing around JD60,000 from bank accounts using forged ATM cards.

Police have also contacted the Interpol seeking a third suspect, who is European and had fled the country, Public Security Department (PSD) Spokesperson Lt. Col. Amer Sartawi said.

The police official told The Jordan Times several individuals complained that “someone was using their bank cards to make withdrawals and purchase goods from local stores”.

“We immediately formed a team to look into the issue, followed up on the purchased items, and concluded that three individuals were responsible,” Sartawi explained.

The perpetrators would install card skimmers at ATMs, which enabled them to read bank cards’ magnetic strips and record customers’ personal identification numbers, according to a PSD statement.

They then used the data to forge duplicate cards and withdraw cash from ATMs, the PSD statement added.

Sartawi said that one Jordanian was arrested at the airport while attempting to leave to a neighbouring country, whereas the second Jordanian was arrested at his home in Amman.

“We found small cameras, a magnetic card copier, some cash and a laptop with the individual who was caught at the airport,” Sartawi said.

The suspect testified to “the forgery of ATM cards and to using them to purchase goods in Amman, and he informed us that he was travelling to a neighbouring Arab country to conduct a similar operation there”, the official added.

Sartawi urged the public to be vigilant when withdrawing cash from ATMs and to keep a look out for strange objects placed on or around the machines.

“People are urged to stop their transactions if they spot strange objects on ATMs and to immediately notify the authorities,” he said.