West Whiteland Township detective Scott Pezick was looking into unauthorized debit card use for a victim when he discovered more potential cases involving EEPICards — a debit card used for child support payments.
When he pulled receipts involving the victim’s card, he saw several other cards that were very likely linked to similar child support accounts.
“What I mean by that is I’ll get a receipt from, in this case, a Target store where my victim’s debit card is used, and on that receipt, in addition to her debit card, I’ll see several other debit cards,” he added.
Pezick said they have more card numbers than they have victims, but he’s still asking everyone who uses an EPPICard to check their accounts. Because it’s not a typical account, some people may not use or check it as often as a typical debit card.
“Check your statements. See if there’s any suspicious activity on there,” he advised. “If there is, notify your local police department so we can possibly identify some of these victims.”
The investigation stretches into New Jersey, with federal, state and local agencies involved. Pezick’s department was able to identify one ring, in which they recovered about $12,000 worth of illegally purchased gift cards.