A former employee of an Alpharetta BP station was sentenced to five years in federal prison for installing a "skimming" device that captured the financial card numbers and personal identification numbers of customers.
Boris Toumasian, 25, of Glendale, Calif., used the information to create counterfeit cards, withdraw money from the customers' bank accounts and buy electronics, prosecutors said. He pleaded guilty last October to charges of conspiracy, credit card fraud and aggravated identity theft, and was sentenced Friday to five years in prison, followed by three years of supervised release. He was also ordered to pay over $86,000 in restitution.
According to U.S. Attorney Sally Quillian Yates, Toumasian and two alleged co-conspirators installed a skimming device at the BP station on Haynes Bridge Road in Alpharetta, then transferred the stolen card numbers to the magnetic stripes on American Express gift cards and used those altered cards to withdraw money from the customers' bank accounts.
Toumasian was indicted on July 7, 2010, along with his alleged co-conspirators, Edmond Alexanyan and Karen Khalatyan. Alexanyan and Khalatyan are fugitives and are still being sought by the Secret Service.
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