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Even U.S. Army falls prey to card skimming fraud in Miami-Dade, records show

Miami-Dade man misuses stolen government-issued credit card numbers from Georgia, feds say

Maikel Fernandez is facing criminal charges in Miami-Dade County. (Copyright 2023 by WPLG Local10.com - All rights reserved.)

MIAMI GARDENS, Fla. – Credit card skimming fraud at gas pumps is so popular that even the U.S. Army fell prey to fraudsters in Miami-Dade County, records show.

A skimmer gave Maikel Fernandez access to a credit card that the federal government had issued for expenses related to a U.S. Army vehicle in Georgia, according to an arrest warrant.

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Fernandez used the stolen credit card numbers to put gas in his black Toyota Tundra, which had been retrofitted with an illegal tank that allowed him to resell the gas, according to Special Agent Robert Rudolph’s request for the arrest warrant.

Rudolph reported a skimmer device at a gas station in Marietta captured the credit card numbers that Fernandez used at gas stations in Miami Gardens, records show.

“Each government-owned vehicle is assigned a GSA Wright Express Credit Card,” Rudolph wrote.

Correctional officers booked Fernandez on Thursday and he was at the Metrowest Detention Center on Monday in Doral, according to county inmate records. The amount of the alleged fraud in the case was larger than $100.

Rudolph is a special agent with the U.S. General Services Administration’s Office of the Inspector General. Records show Fernandez is facing charges of an organized scheme to defraud, fraudulent use of a credit card, and petit theft in Miami-Dade County.


About the Author
Andrea Torres headshot

The Emmy Award-winning journalist joined the Local 10 News team in 2013. She wrote for the Miami Herald for more than 9 years and won a Green Eyeshade Award.

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