Fake Gift Cards Seized in Rollover Investigation

An investigation into a rollover near Ernfold in late March has turned up several fraudulent gift cards.

RCMP say 30 fake gift cards were seized along with computers, two grams of cocaine and drug paraphenalia after executing a search warrant on a 2004 Dodge Durango that was involved in the single-vehicle collision, which occurred on Highway 1 near Ernfold at 11:15pm on March 21st. Two people in the vehicle were taken to the Herbert & District Integrated Healthcare Facility for treatment and later released.

Police found a suspected firearm and seven grams of crystal meth in the vehicle in the inital investigation of the collision. Three men, aged 30, 24 and 22, from Calgary were charged with possession of a controlled substance and released from custody pending their next court appearance on June 15th, and RCMP say further charges are possible as the investigation continues.

In the meantime, they are asking businesses to be vigilant when they receive a gift card, especially ones that they have to enter manually, and look for signs that they have been tampered with. Police say the majority of the gift cards that were seized were Visa and MasterCard branded gift cards with the original numbers sanded off, and then appeared to have been embossed with the stolen credit card numbers, expiry dates and customer names. They add the cards had many warning signs that they had been tampered with such as the screen printed first four digits did not match and some had the last four digits on the signature strip that did not match as well.

RCMP are asking those with information that can help with the investigation to contact Saskatchewan Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-8477.