5 Sinos in credit card fraud charged

MANILA, Philippines - Five Chinese nationals believed to be members of a transnational syndicate involved in credit card fraud have been charged before the Department of Justice (DOJ).

The suspects, identified as Andong Ye, Shizhong Zhou, Wei Sheng, Yantai Luo, and Yangfeng Luo through their Chinese passports, were subjected to inquest proceedings for violation of Republic Act 8484 (Access Devices Regulation Act of 1998) before Assistant State Prosecutor Juan Pedro Navera last Friday afternoon.

They were arrested by agents of the National Bureau of Investigation’s Technical Intelligence Division in a residential building in Carmenville Subdivision in Angeles City, Pampanga last June 13 by virtue of a search warrant issued by Judge Lyliha Abella-Aquino of Manila Regional Trial Court Branch 24.

The NBI, however, failed to arrest a certain Wang and Huang, the alleged Taiwanese leaders of the syndicate who were the original targets of the raid.

“This group is involved in the illegal operation of access device fraud through the Internet and are in the illegal activity of producing, using, trafficking in one or more counterfeit access devices and having in control or custody of or possessing device-making or altering equipment without being in the business or employment which lawfully deals with the manufacture of such devices,” the NBI said in its complaint.

“Intelligence sources further revealed that this foreign syndicate conducts fraudulent online transactions and steals credit card information through hacking and other malicious misrepresentation in the Internet via equipment like telephones, computers, routers, access devices, modems, two-way radios and scripted documents,” it added.

Seized from the suspects during the raid were assorted credit cards, a skimming device, routers, a laptop, modem, printer, telephones, and various documents.

The suspects, who were provided with a public attorney during the inquest proceedings, opted not to defend themselves in a preliminary investigation.

Navera said the case will be filed with the Angeles City RTC today.