February 2012

Walnut Creek Police reported that three people from around Los Angeles purchased mutliple gift cards using fraudulent credit cards at the Walnut Creek Nordstrom, and after searching their vehicle found over $10,000 worth of fraudulently purchased gift cards and credit cards belonging to other people. All three were arrested and are being held on $70,000 bail each.

On February 25, 2012 at approximately 4:15 p.m., Walnut Creek Police Officers responded to Nordstrom, located at 1200 Broadway Plaza for a report of multiple suspects using fraudulent credit cards to purchase gift cards. The suspects had left Nordstrom prior to officer’s arrivals. Officers spotted the three subjects in a van parked in the Nordstrom parking lot and detained them. Nordstrom Loss Prevention Agents responded and identified the three suspects as the persons responsible for the frauds that had just occurred in the store. They also informed the officers that these subjects have been identified in numerous frauds at several Nordstrom’s’ throughout the state. Officers identified the subjects as Xianglong Cao, Jarmar Bethea and Joseph Quinney and they were arrested (see above). Officers searched the subjects and the van and located over $10,000 worth of fraudulently purchased gift cards and credit cards belonging to other people. Officers confirmed the suspects were all from the Los Angeles area and had committed similar crimes in other city’s throughout California. The suspects were planning on heading to Portland, Oregon from Walnut Creek.

Anyone with additional information are asked to contact the Walnut Creek Police Department at (925)943-5844.

I wonder if Neiman Marcus will encounter the same types of crime that Nordstrom has to deal with. And what about Macy’s, why don’t I ever read reports about similar incidents at Macy’s?

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