Three men from Latvia have been arrested in connection with a gift card cloning scheme that authorities say netted an estimated $14 million across Texas and Louisiana.
Officials said more than 400 cloned gift cards were seized during the arrests. Investigators said the suspects are believed to be part of a larger crime ring operating in the United States.
Authorities said the men, identified as Kristians Petrovskis, Romunds Cubrevics and Nurmunds Ulevicus operated seven days a week, targeting about 10 stores daily since May 2025.
They allegedly took cards from store shelves without paying, stole the electronic numbers from the back, repackaged the cards, and returned them to the stores.
Lieutenant John Haecker of the Dallas Field Office of the Tyler-based Texas Financial Crimes Intelligence Center said additional prosecutions are expected under a new Texas law cracking down on gift card tampering, which took effect in September.
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