Police investigating large-scale Treasure Valley credit fraud, seek victims
Law enforcement is warning Treasure Valley residents about ongoing large-scale credit card fraud and hoping more victims come forward.
Police believe suspects are stealing money from residents through a type of scam known as “ghost tapping,” a Nampa Police Department release said Thursday afternoon.
Ghost tapping involves fraudsters gaining access to credit and bank information through mobile apps like Apple Pay or Google Pay. They use small electromagnetic signals to simulate swiping and tapping motions that can cause pay apps to open and close remotely without needing a human touch, according to City National Bank.
“The app used by these criminals obscures the actual credit card number, making it harder for investigators to link a victim to a particular crime,” Nampa police said.
Nampa authorities have arrested 12 people so far in these incidents, Nampa Police Department spokesperson Carmen Boeger told the Idaho Statesman. She did not respond to the Statesman’s request for suspects’ names.
The Boise Police Department confirmed to the Statesman that it also made recent arrests in ghost tapping scams.
Nampa police said its detectives identified more suspects, but can’t arrest them until victims are identified.
Police are looking for victims of fraud in cases in which the victim did not lose possession of their cards. These cases would have occurred from Jan. 28 to the present day, according to the release. Victims may contact the local agency where the fraud happened. Nampa victims should leave a voicemail for Nampa Police Detective Dan Hoover at 208-565-5144.
“We also believe victims are not coming forward; instead, they are reporting the fraud they find in their accounts to their banks and credit card companies, rather than to the law enforcement entity where the crime occurred,” Nampa police said.
Police said they found evidence on suspects’ cellphones of larger-scale crimes. Local agencies said they have “reached the limit of our jurisdictional authority” and have not been successful yet in getting federal partners to join the investigation.
“The forensic examinations of the cellphones have shown that the suspects are involved in the list of criminal activity mentioned previously in this release — human trafficking, drug trafficking, large-scale fraud, money laundering, CSAM, and wildlife trafficking,” the Nampa Police Department said. “There is also evidence of two out-of-state warehouses that are likely clearinghouses for stolen goods.”
