Toronto detectives have told the National Post that a group of unknown taxi drivers is stealing riders debit cards and cleaning out their bank accounts. The author of the story, Jake Edmiston, says the larceny has appeared at many banks with the TD alone reporting 65 claims. Complaints are occurring nearly daily, Edmiston reports The fraud relies on tired, busy or perhaps intoxicated riders who do not pay enough attention to their business with taxi drivers.
DEBIT CARDS STOLEN
Debits cards are taken by the rogue cabbies and replaced with bogus plastic. Detectives say the ring has stolen dozens of bank cards from bleary, late-night riders and emptied their accounts over the past month. One rider complained that $720 was taken from her account after a taxi driver gave her back a card with a different name and number on it. A bogus point-of-sale machine is employed to swipe data from a customer’s debit or credit card, then in a fast shuffle replaced with a fake card. Detective Beattie is said to believe there is a sophisticated back-end to this scheme with a number of people involved.
VIDEO EXISTS OF A CRIME
He told reporter Edmiston that there is video of a crime taking place. Police have it but are keeping it private for the moment. Christine Hubbard of Beck Taxi said it is ludicrous to think the scam has anything to do with taxis vs. Uber. “You know what, there is risk when using any kind of payment device,” she said. In fact, it seems reasonable to conclude such dishonesty underlines the need for strict taxi and livery regulations. It is another example of criminal activity in a field — including Uber — that is susceptible to such behaviour.
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