2 Washington men charged with fraud in purchase of gift cards in Boise

Boise police say they caught two men from Washington state using stolen credit cards and/or debit cards to purchase gift cards at local businesses, according to a press release Monday.

Mohamed Kariye, a 30-year-old from Kent, and Mohamed Jarato, a 31-year-old from Renton, were both charged with felony grand theft, felony fraudulent use of a financial transaction card and felony burglary.

The men were arrested after police were called to a report of suspicious activity at a business in the 3500 block of South Federal Way at about 6:40 p.m. Friday, the release said.

Staff at the business told police that the men had attempted to buy gift cards with fraudulent financial transaction cards. Earlier in the day, police were notified of similar activity at other businesses. The suspects in those reports matched the description of Kariye and Jarato.

Investigators said the men were found to have financial transaction cards that did not belong to them, and those cards had been used to make purchases in the area.

This story was originally published December 17, 2018 at 5:37 PM.