Fairfax County Men Caught With ATM Skimming Device, Police Say

Two Fairfax County men have been arrested in a Richmond, Virginia suburb after police say they were caught using a skimming device at an ATM in a bank.

Chesterfield County police arrested Andrei Turski, 21, and Kirill Karotkov, 27, on Oct. 29, charging each with six counts of credit card fraud.

Investigators are working with Fairfax County police to determine the scope of the operation. Items seized from the suspects’ apartment led police to believe the men under question have been running a very lucrative debit and credit card skimming operation. 

ATM skimming is a process in which a device affixed to an ATM allows criminals to steal your financial data -- and your money. Skimmers are small electronic devices that fit over the slot you swipe (or push) your debit and credit cards into, which steal your card details.

Police caught on to the scheme when a customer at a Bank of America ATM in Chesterfield County noticed a problem with her transaction.

"When she pulled her card out, she also pulled out a skimming device," Chesterfield County Police Lt. Steve Grohowski said. 

A patrol officer approached a suspicious car parked in a church lot near the bank on Oct. 26. The suspects were inside the vehicle, along with $8,000 and multiple credit and debit cards. However, police report there was no cause to arrest the men, so they were allowed to leave.

Following the encounter with the patrol officer, Chesterfield County police set up surveillance at the Bank of America ATM. Korotkov and Turski returned and were arrested.

Farifax County police were assisting with the investigation. They searched the suspects' apartment and found stacks of cash, more than $32,000, some of it stuffed in a brown paper bag. Police also found multiple credit cards and an ATM skimming device used to copy card numbers.

"They got a significant amount of money. It seems like they were doing this pretty consistently," said Lt. Grohowski.

Police are starting to determine how many banks might have been targeted from Northern Virginia to the Richmond area. They have already identified at least 40 victims from the Bank of America branch in Chesterfield County where the suspects were arrested.

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