Credit card cloning gang members face jail (From Bucks Free Press)

Credit card cloning gang members face jail

7:10pm Friday 9th January 2009 in

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FIVE members of a gang which cloned credit cards to steal £141,000 of fuel from petrol stations across the country are facing jail today.

The plot operated in Wycombe, east London, Watford and Wheatley in Oxfordshire.

The gang skimmed 253 cards which customers had used to pay for mobile phones, before draining unmanned pumps for free.

Alexandra Felix, prosecuting, told Southwark Crown Court their criminal associates also operated in Manchester and Wigan.

The ring was smashed after the thieves were seen filling large metal drums at two different venues.

Farid Patel, 23, supplied the skimmer to relative Shoeb Patel, 24, who copied card details while working in Carphone Warehouse in Canary Wharf.

Farid distributed the cloned cards to his cohorts and joined Asquar Axam, 23, Javed Bhikha, 27, and Ashif Umarjee, 24, to raid the pumps.

Ms Felix said: “These defendants conspired together and with persons unknown to steal fuel using stolen credit card details.

“Found in their possession were articles used in the fraud, namely a device carrying the stolen card information as well as equipment that enabled the details of cards to be skimmed.

“In relation to Shoeb Patel, he compromised card details while in a position of trust as an employee of Carphone Warehouse.”

In October 2007 Asda's corporate security manager noted American Express cards were being used for 'block purchases' of petrol at the two terminals.

In just three days £3,065 of fuel was pumped into the same vehicle at branches of the supermarket in East Ferry Road and Leyton Mills.

The next month the gang struck at a pump in High Wycombe, but were spotted by police.

Asquar was a passenger in a van driven by Bhikha found to contain several drums they claimed were empty.

When police found the drums were too heavy to move one of the gang claimed he worked in a garage and the petrol was 'dirty diesel'.

Two days' later a police community support officer spotted Farid crouching down and tampering with a silver Mercedes van in London Road, Wheatley, while wearing latex gloves.

Farid, who was with Umarjee, claimed the vehicle was losing water but a search revealed the van was crammed with fuel drums.

Farid Patel and Umarjee of East Ham, Bhikha, of Forest Gate and Azam, of Oxford, each admitted conspiracy to steal fuel between July 31 and November 27, 2007.

Shoeb Patel, of Manor Park, pleaded guilty to a like charge on the basis that he did not know fuel was being stolen, and a further charge of fraud by abuse of position.

Umarjee, Farid and Azam also admitted possessing articles for use in fraud.

The five will be sentenced on February 9.