The V.I. Police Department Economic Crimes Unit tracked down a suspect accused of using the image of credit cards he didn’t own to purchase thousands of dollars worth of goods and services. The suspect, identified as Xavier Calvin Graham-Luchtman, was arrested Sept. 23 at Lindbergh Bay Beach, court records say.
Documents filed in the case also say a pattern of purchases dating back to June caught the eye of managers at a big box store at the Market Square East Shopping Center, who then called in the police. Authorities were presented with nine transactions using six different credit cards, where purchases were made by one customer, who showed images of those cards on a cell phone.
The manager at Cost-U-Less said she was contacted by the corporate office and asked to provide documents related to a series of fraudulent transactions where a credit card was used. As she began to work on the matter around July 3, an employee called to let her know the person believed to be involved with the transactions was in the store at the cashier.
“(The manager) went downstairs to the register and watched the cashier ring up the items. When it was time to pay, the light-skinned male brought out his phone with a credit card on it, and the cashier told him they can no longer accept credit cards on the phone. (The manager) approached the male, and he greeted her by saying, ‘Hi, honey, hi sweetie, Why I can’t use my phone?’” said a statement filed by the arresting officer.
As the in-house probe continued, a supervisor informed the manager she had become suspicious of the phone-wielding customer on an earlier occasion and recorded a copy of the identification card he used. The card belonged to a Georgia resident bearing the suspect’s name.
Chargebacks by banks on the credit cards used occurred between June 4 and June 25, totaling over $8,300. As police and store executives gathered more information, they traced the credit cards back to two stateside card holders who said they had never been to the Virgin Islands.
A pursuit of the spending pattern also began to show up at restaurants, barge companies and stores on St. Thomas and St. John. Continued pursuit of the activity eventually led police to Lindbergh Bay Beach on Sept. 23.
At the time of the encounter, police said they found Graham-Luchtman talking on a cell phone. Once they informed the suspect he was under arrest, they said he tossed the phone to a female companion and told her to call his parents.
He was charged with fraudulent use of a credit card, obtaining money, goods or services with a credit card obtained through fraud, grand larceny, petit larceny, and theft through fraud using a credit card.
Graham-Luchtman made his initial appearance before Superior Court Magistrate Paula Norkadis on Tuesday. He is expected to enter his plea to the charges at an arraignment hearing set for Oct. 11.
A second person also accused of taking part in the scheme — identified as Alvin Baptiste III — was arrested Sept. 16 and is facing similar charges, court records say.
