SAN DIEGO – In what is believed to be the first connection of violent street gangs to a sophisticated bank scam in California, 60 suspects were arrested Tuesday in a predawn raid here and charged with scamming Navy FCU out of more than $500,000.
The suspects, including more than a dozen members of San Diego’s Lincoln Park gang, were charged with conspiracy, money laundering, forgery and burglary.
"Street thugs, operating like white collar criminals, devised an ingenious scam to bilk Navy Federal Credit Union out of $500,000," said California Attorney general Edmund Brown, Jr. "They recruited and paid off willing credit union members and manipulated rules to feed their criminal enterprise."
The gang members, according to authorities, recruited acquaintances who had accounts at Navy Fed and paid them a portion of the receipts in exchange for their credit card and personal account information. The member information allowed the recruiters to deposit counterfeit checks in the accounts that were withdrawn in cash. The account holders then reported the card stolen. Most of the transactions were conducted on ATMs at the Barona Indian Casino. The casino was targeted because it has a point-of-sale ATM that allows for larger withdrawals than most ATMs, officials said.
The investigation was initiated after Navy Fed officials noticed suspicious activity in 2005 and reported it to the U.S. Secret Service. San Diego gang detectives were brought in to identify and interview suspects.
The total loss is estimated at more than $500,000, which investigators believe was used to help fund illegal gang activities and pay for a lavish street gang lifestyle.
Among those charged are three active duty Marines, a sailor and an Army soldier, who had accounts at the credit union and cooperated with the scheme. Sixteen of the 60 are Lincoln Park Gang members.
The suspects are scheduled to be arraigned in San Diego Superior Court this morning.
