Hoboken Police Warn Shoppers on Gift Card Fraud

Hoboken police yesterday warned the public about a new round of fraudulent gift card purchases hitting local retail outlets.

A Brooklyn man was arrested Thursday afternoon at 1:56 p.m. on charges he tried to purchase $2,000 in gift cards at a Ben & Jerry’s ice cream shop 405 Washington Street in Hoboken, and was found with 15 fraudulent credit cards and a fake driver’s license, according to police spokesman Sgt. Edgardo Cruz.

The suspect, Johnny Taylor, 34, was charged with fraudulent use of a credit card, posession of fake identfication, theft, obstruction and hindering apprehension, police said. The man was also charged on a fugitive warrant, but police did not immediately have that information.

He was remanded to Hudson County Correctional Facility on $15,000 bail, police said.

The owner called police after falling victim to a previous incident, and the suspect was questioned by Officer Marc Marsi, initially claiming a customer that just left was involved, police said. After an employee identified the suspect, police said he took off and jumped into a dumpster near Court Street and closed the lid.

Police said they found the suspect’s wallet on the ground with 15 credit cards and five gift cards under the name of someone named Neil Anderson, along with a fake Maryland license under that name.

A double-parked Lexus with Pennsylvania plates was issued a citation and towed from the scene, but police were still trying to determine whether that car was connected.

Police warned that anyone suspecting card fraud should check to make sure the cards have matching numbers in small print of a Visa or MasterCard