Keep car doors locked: Thieves travel to Athens to steal credit cards, more left in cars

A Lilburn man and his associates face charges stemming from a “low-level organized crime” scheme that local authorities said involved stealing credit cards in Athens and using them to purchase thousands of dollars in gift cards.

The scheme was perpetrated in Athens, Oconee County, Gwinnett County and possibly other metro Atlanta cities until they were caught in late April, Athens-Clarke police detective Nathaniel Franco said in a recent interview.

Those involved would come to Athens and break into cars, mostly at public parks, steal credit cards and immediately go the nearest department store and purchase gift cards before the victims even realized the thefts, according to Franco.

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The detective gathered evidence documenting the same group coming to Athens on March 21 at Ben Burton Park and the State Botanical Garden; on March 25 at the Botanical Garden and Lake Chapman; on March 31 at the Oconee River Greenway and Southeast Clarke Park; and, April 4 on the Greenway and Ben Burton Park.

“We started gathering evidence and saw it was the same vehicle every time,” Franco said.

One suspect was there each time, but on occasion he carried along a different associate, he said.

Police had a photo of the prime suspect taken on a surveillance camera at Sandy Creek Park and they knew he always drove a dark gray Dodge Durango.

“We knew the car and the face. We just didn’t know who the guy was, but we were convinced he was living under a false identity, so we wanted to catch him in the act,” “Franco said.

The officer said that happened on April 28.

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How police nabbed the culprit

Franco said he was already working with investigators with the Oconee County Sheriff’s Office, Gwinnett County police and University of Georgia police.

Gwinnett County police detectives had already located the unidentified prime suspect at a home in Lilburn and had him under surveillance, according to Franco.

“Once we knew where the vehicle was, I worked with Gwinnett County and we started tracking the vehicle. They were able to contact me (April 28) and tell me the vehicle was headed in the direction of Athens and they were following it,” he said.

“We had a helicopter following as well. The car came to Athens and drove to Bishop Park,” he said. The suspects drove through the park, but apparently didn’t find a suitable vehicle, so they drove to Ben Burton Park and were inside the park for more time.

“We couldn’t see what they were doing because there is so much tree cover,” he said, adding that when the suspects left the park, they drove to the Walmart Neighborhood Market on Atlanta Highway, where they were observed buying gift cards with credit cards.

“We suspected they had taken them from a vehicle, but we didn’t have confirmation they had committed a crime,” Franco said. “I sent an officer to Ben Burton to see if anybody was there.”

The officer did encounter a woman who flagged the officer down and reported she received an alert that her credit card was being used at the Walmart on Atlanta Highway, according to Franco.

By this time, the suspects had left and traveled to the Walmart in Oconee County, where one of the suspects went into the store.

More officers converged outside Walmart, and Franco said he believes the suspect that remained in the car called his associate and warned him as the suspect was seen putting the stolen credit cards in a trash can.

When he came out, both men were arrested. An instrument used to punch locks was seized in the Dodge, as this is what was used to entered the vehicles that were broken into, according to Franco.

Facing the consequences

One man was identified as a 44-year-old resident of McDonough, while the suspect believed involved in all of the crimes gave what turned out to be the false name he was using as an alias. He finally provided his real name as Euridis Hernandez-Martinez, 44, of Gwinnett County.

“He was wanted in New Jersey where he skipped bail on a drug charge,” Franco said.

Hernandez-Martinez is charged in about 50 warrants from credit fraud and theft to giving a false name and entering auto. He remains without bond in the Athens-Clarke County Jail.

“UGAPD and Oconee County have also taken charges and so has Gwinnett County and they likely will face charges in several other metro Atlanta jurisdictions,“ Franco said. Detectives are still investigating what happened to the gift cards, although Franco said some are believed sent to locations in New Jersey.

Similar organized groups are making trips to Athens to commit crimes, the detective said.

“This isn’t the only one we’re investigating,” he said.

“They target parks and gyms. They know these are two locations that people leave their purses, wallets and backpacks,” he said. “This happens every day across the country.”

“Most come through a town once and they don’t come back,” Franco said. “These guys got greedy and kept coming back and we caught them.”

This article originally appeared on Athens Banner-Herald: Police surveillance leads to arrests of suspects in Athens card fraud