Chinese man charged with “contact payment” fraud for using stolen debit card for payments

gift card Before the customer purchases the card, the card number is stolen and funds can be transferred after payment and recharge are made. 2 recent cases of interstate travelscam The case revealed a variety of methods: a Chinese man admitted to secretly recording card numbers and then putting the gift cards back on the shelf; Another man from Southern California admittedirwin Mr. Hua was suspected of using stolen financial card information to pay for gift cards and high-priced electronic products. He was charged with several felonies.

According to KSL TV, Liu Huan, a 36-year-old Chinese man who lives in Irvine, was indicted in Utah’s Fourth District Court on November 4 and charged with felony counts of money laundering, continuing participation in illegal activities, fraud and illegal use of financial cards.

Prosecutors reported that this type of “tap-to-pay” fraud uses stolen credit or debit card information stored in a mobile phone wallet to make tap-to-pay payments at stores, and the charges are debited from the stolen cardholder’s account. Those involved typically accumulate multiple sets of card numbers, make purchases in multiple transactions and use different card numbers each time.

Liu Huan will buy gift cards and recharge them. He will then send the card information to his upline, who will transfer the gift card funds. Investigators suspect that relevant criminal organizations are headquartered in China, have strongholds in California and New York, and send people across state borders to commit crimes. Dozens of Chinese citizens have been suspected of such fraud in the past year.

Prosecutors alleged that Liu Huan made purchases via contactless payment in several cities in Utah and other states beginning on October 1. When police arrested him, they found dozens of receipts from gift card purchases, dozens of gift cards, and several new high-priced electronic products still in their original boxes.

He admitted to police that he had traveled from Los Angeles to Utah, purchased two gift cards totaling 980 yuan, and sent the screenshots to a contact in China in hopes of receiving a reward of 100 yuan. There has been no punishment in the case yet.

Liang Xiong (transliterated), a 39-year-old Chinese man, also pleaded guilty in St. Louis federal court on November 4, according to a notice from the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Missouri. He first stole gift cards from the store, removed the coating that obscured the serial number, wrote down the number, and then placed the card back on the shelf, intending to wait for customers to purchase the card and recharge it, then steal the funds.

The plea agreement said Xiong Liang stole gift cards at multiple locations from February to March this year and returned the tampered cards to stores in Colorado, Iowa and Missouri. He stole 15 Amazon gift cards on March 10 and returned 16 Apple gift cards stolen earlier to another store the next day. He was arrested by the police the same day.

Police found 134 tampered gift cards in his car. If customers buy and recharge it, the total amount can reach 58,300 yuan. However, in this case all gift cards were recovered before they were purchased by the customer.

Court documents show Xiong Liang entered the country illegally through Mexico and his application for political asylum is still pending. He is scheduled to be sentenced on February 10, 2027. They face up to 10 years in prison and a fine of 250,000 yuan. After completing his sentence he can be deported. Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) reminds that when purchasing gift cards, you should look for signs that tell if the cards have been altered or are counterfeit.