Bank discovers data skimmers on two drive-thru ATMs

Several customers reported unauthorized charges; two Santa Fe branches affected

Los Alamos National Bank employees discovered skimmers — scanning devices used to steal bank card information — at drive-thru ATMs at two Santa Fe branches this week after customers disputed suspicious charges on their accounts.

The devices have been removed from automatic teller machines outside bank offices at 3674 Cerrillos Road and 301 Griffin St., according to a police incident report, along with cameras that had been placed above the machines to record card users entering their PIN numbers.

It was not immediately clear when the skimmers were put on the ATMs, but John Gulas, the bank’s president and CEO, said Wednesday that he believed the scam began late last week.

The police report said the manager at the Cerrillos Road branch called police Monday and reported several customers had discovered charges on their cards that had been made out of state. A teller then noticed a blinking light on the card reader on the drive-thru ATM was darker than the one on an ATM near the bank’s front door, according to the report.

The fake card slot was removed, and the branch manager notified personnel at other Los Alamos National Bank locations in Santa Fe, according to the report. A skimmer was found on the drive-thru ATM at the downtown branch on Griffin Street and it was removed, as well.

A police report indicates that a potential suspect, identified on bank surveillance footage, appears to be a man wearing sunglasses and a hat.

Police ask anyone with information about the case to call 505-428-3710.

The bank’s customers have been notified, and potentially affected cards have been suspended, Gulas said. New cards have been ordered for those customers, he added.

“We’re very up front about reporting it,” Gulas said. “We want to catch these bad folks.

“What we tell our customers — and this is true of any ATM or any device that takes an ATM card or credit card in a public place, they’re all susceptible — is you need to really tug on it and see if it gives at all,” he said. “If it gives at all, it’s probably not good to put your card in there.”

Albuquerque police earlier this year identified a skimming operation at gas stations and warned customers not to pay at the pump.

Late last month, the Albuquerque Police Department said investigators believed customers could again safely use card slots at gas station pumps, according to a KOB-TV report. Police issued arrest warrants for three suspects — Daimarelis Ramirez-Borges, Francisco Figueroa-Martinez and Jose Dieguezpineda — and identified a person of interest in the case.