A former waiter at a TGI Friday’s restaurant in Maryland has been indicted on 16 counts of identity theft, theft and conspiracy to commit theft in a credit card skimming scheme that prosecutors say affected 73 individuals.
The investigation began after unauthorized charges showed up on the credit cards of two U.S. Secret Service employees.
Brian Keith Adams, 21, of Elkridge, Md., allegedly ran customers’ credit cards through a hand-held skimming device that saved the information off their magnetic stripes, and then passed it on to others who used the data to make $42,000 in unauthorized purchases, according to the Prince George’s (Maryland) County prosecutor’s office.
Adams allegedly carried out the scheme from December 2009 through April 2010 but did not use the credit card numbers himself. If convicted, he faces a long prison term and fines that exceed $25,000. He also could be ordered to pay restitution to the scheme’s victims.
