by Joseph Kenny | 12/9/09

Residents in several states have been victimized by thieves during the month of November. The thieves are stealing debit card numbers and pin numbers. That is all that is needed to withdraw funds from a customer’s bank account using an ATM machine. The reports of ATM thefts have been coming from multiple states but it appears the ring of thieves began in Wisconsin.

The police identified a series of ATM thefts that occurred in ATM machines located in Hancock Fabric stores in two separate Wisconsin cities. The cash withdrawals were made using debit card numbers that had been used previously by consumers to make purchases at specific Wisconsin Hancock Fabric stores in prior months. Now there are reports of thefts occurring in multiple states including Missouri and California.

So far there have been up to 70 victims reporting as much as $2,000 being withdrawn from individual accounts. In total $40,000 has been stolen. The most recent thefts occurred in Napa and Sacramento so the group of thieves is expanding its efforts.

According to law enforcement, the ATM thefts are being handled by a very organized group of people. The thefts are occurring in multiple cities on the same days and all are related to debit card accounts used to make purchases at Hancock Fabric stores in Stevens Point and Marshfield, Wisconsin. There were 50 victims in Napa alone recently, but thefts recently occurred in Richmond, Dixon, and Vallejo, California also.

Though the consumers are not going to lose the money stolen, the theft of the debit card numbers raises concerns of identity theft. This is yet another warning that consumers must review their bank and credit card accounts regularly. Any suspicious charges or cash withdrawals you did not make should be reported to law enforcement immediately. One of the ways law enforcement is able to capture these types of thieves is by establishing patterns of behavior. Agencies from multiple states report to each other and that’s how the link to Hancock Fabrics was discovered.

The banks are the victims in this particular case because they must restore the stolen funds to customer accounts But not all thefts involving bank accounts end so well for consumers. When an ATM theft leads to an identity theft it can take consumers many years to undo the damage.

The ATM thefts have crossed state lines now so it is likely that federal investigators will become involved. Right now it is only local law enforcement handling the investigation. There are no suspects at this point. Anyone who purchased goods at Hancock Fabrics stores in Stevens Point and Marshfield, Wisconsin last August and September using their debit card are especially vulnerable to this organized effort to steal cash through ATMs.

As the holiday season approaches consumers are warned to exercise extra caution when using debit and credit cards. Though the victims had no control over the ATM thefts in this case, there are many theft prevention steps that can be taken in other instances. One of the simplest is making sure no one can see the pin number you punch into an ATM machine or credit/debit authorization box.