Two jailed for using machines to make fake ATM cards

A Doha Criminal Court has sentenced two Moroccan men to three years in jail and a fine of QR20,000 each for owning and using machines to make ATM cards without licence.

Local Arabic daily Arrayah reported that the court also ordered their deportation upon serving their sentence.

The issue started when information reached the department concerned at the Ministry of Interior.

An undercover officer approached one of the defendants at Souq Waqif and became friendly with him. The officer told the defendant that he had been having some financial problems and needed more money.

The defendant offered to sell him a machine that could make counterfeit ATM cards with high quality and precision. He asked QR7,000 for each card produced and agreed to train him on how to use the machine.

Both parties met and everything was recorded in a legal way using a permit obtained earlier from the public prosecution.

When arrested, the defendant reported his accomplice who was also arrested later and it turned out that he owned some sophisticated equipment and software for the same purpose. The court then convicted them.

Courtesy: gulf-times.com