Metro News Release
For immediate release: July 18, 2008
Metro Transit Police arrest several in counterfeit fare card scheme
Six people face multiple charges in a counterfeit fare card scheme, Metro officials announced today.
“This was a sophisticated operation to defraud a public agency,” said Metro General Manager John Catoe. “Under no circumstances will we tolerate people who steal from the riders and taxpayers of this region.”
Police arrested six people since Wednesday at Judiciary Square, Union Station, Pentagon and Eastern Market Metrorail stations.
“The thieves would trade in counterfeit paper fare cards at fare card machines and would receive legitimate cards or they would put counterfeit cards into the machine and shift the value to SmarTrip cards,” said Catoe. “They used the cards and sold them to the public.”
Police arrested Marc Daniels, 37, of District Heights, Md., Edvin Ramirez, 23, of Northwest Washington, Maria Escobar, 32, and Cosme Ochoa, 35, of Falls Church, Va., Wednesday in three separate arrests. Police arrested Jose Garcia Delgado, 24, and Edgar Antonio Lemus-Sanchez, 23, of Northwest Washington Thursday in separate arrests. The six face felony theft charges.
Metro treasury officials were alerted to the scheme when they discovered irregularities in fare purchases.
“We want anyone who tries to rob us to know that we’re watching, and we will pursue you, arrest you and help prosecute you,” said Metro Transit Police Chief Michael Taborn.
Metro officials are investigating the extent of the fraud, including the amount of money stolen. So far, police have recovered more than $16,000 worth of stolen fare cards. Police declined to release other details to avoid jeopardizing the investigation.
Catoe announced five steps the agency was taking to lessen vulnerability to counterfeiting.
“The amount of money customers may trade in the value of a paper fare card has been lowered from a maximum of $40 to $7,” Catoe said of the change that is effective today.
Metro also is freezing SmarTrip cards that investigators believe are linked to the scheme.
“To our customers, only buy Metro fare cards from authorized Metro vendors in our stations and at sales centers,” said Catoe. “We also will work with local governments to ask them to pass laws that make selling fare cards from unauthorized Metro vendors illegal. Lastly, we will explore better technologies for detecting counterfeit cards.”
Metro began posting signs in stations and on fare card machines today alerting riders to the fare card changes and advising them to buy from authorized Metro sales vendors.
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News release issued at 4:04 pm, July 18, 2008.