Man nabbed for P.3-M credit card fraud

MANILA, Philippines - A man was arrested in a sting on Friday for making purchases amounting to almost P.3 million as he assumed the identity of a dead man.

Eamon Criz Madriaga, 35, used the identity of a dead man in securing a credit card, which he had utilized several times in two days to buy goods totaling P287,801.34, investigators from the police’s Anti-Cybercrime Group (ACG) learned.

Madriaga was apprehended along Sen. Neptali Gonzales street in Mandaluyong City on Feb. 13, ACG chief Senior Superintendent Gilbert Sosa said.

Undercover police officers acted as couriers to deliver another credit card to Madriaga, who presented an identification card bearing the name of a person who died two years ago, Sosa said.

The ACG chief said the operation stemmed from a complaint filed by law firm Baterina Baterina Casals Lozada & Tiblani in behalf of a local bank, claiming that a man has been using a credit card named after a dead person to buy groceries, an electric motorcycle, and other items at different supermarkets and stores in Metro Manila.

Quoting reports, Sosa said Madriaga could have had a contact among the bank employees, which allowed him to get the information of some deceased persons.

 “Under the modus operandi, the credit card of the dead person will be delivered to their conspirator and will be used to buy items from different merchants. The items will be sold at a lower price as (they) divide the proceeds,” Sosa explained.

He said the credit card company was alarmed after Madriaga bought items from various shops worth almost P287,801.34 in two days.

Sosa said Madriaga would be charged with violating Republic Act 8484, the Access Device Act of 1998.

Authorities are conducting further investigations to identify Madriaga’s cohorts, particularly in the banks, who facilitate the issuance of credit cards named after deceased individuals.