(Old regular: can we have a new category labeled "Internet?" Thanks.)

link

(fair use blah blah posted 08:55 MST 2000/03/05)

"Italian couple accused of online fraud spree

Italian police have charged a man and woman with stealing thousands of credit card numbers from computer files at U.S. banks.

The husband and wife, arrested at their house in eastern Sicily on Saturday, are accused of ringing up hundreds of thousands of dollars in an online shopping spree.

Detectives said the couple used the stolen credit card numbers to place $750,000 worth of lottery bets over the Internet  winning back about $400,000.

They also ordered clothes, watches and thousands of novels.

The man, an electronics expert from Italy, and the woman, a linguist and interpreter from Israel, rang up about $2,500 on each card before moving on to the next one, according to police.

Detectives said they began their investigation after getting a tip about suspicious bets being placed at an online gambling service.

Not concerned about the cost of wagering, the suspects played all possible combinations to ensure a win of some sort, according to police."

-- firefly (forest@calm.dot), March 05, 2000