Two suspects who have been placing skimming devices on payment terminals at stores across Brooklyn were arrested on Wednesday following intervention from Williamsburg Shomrim.

Shomrim tells YWN that they received a call from a Flushing Avenue supermarket owner who discovered a suspicious device attached to his payment terminal. The device, known as a “skimmer,” is used to record credit, debit, or EBT card numbers and was disguised to look like part of the terminal.

Shomrim members identified the suspects through surveillance footage and tracked their car to the Pulaski Bridge, where they were arrested by NYPD officers at around 3:30 p.m.

This is the latest in a series of EBT fraud incidents in Brooklyn, with two suspects identified in Williamsburg earlier this month and another pair arrested in Flatbush on Tuesday. In light of the recent attempts to steal credit card information, the NYPD has advised shoppers to be vigilant and to gently tug at privacy guards on payment terminals, as fake ones can be easily removed.

Williamsburg Shomrim Coordinator Yanky Itzkowitz tells YWN “Store owners should be vigilant and inspect their machines every few hours, We need show potential thieves that they will not succeed in defrauding our community members, particularly those who depend on EBT to feed their families.”

Williamsburg Shomrim has also created a program to help store owners quickly identify if their machines have been compromised.

(YWN World Headquarters – NYC)