A 27-year-old suspect in Clinton “skimming” incidents was in custody Saturday in Scott County Jail on charges involving unauthorized use of a credit card in Bettendorf, according to court documents.
Sorin Tabac faces four aggravated misdemeanor charges of unauthorized use of a credit card – under $1,500, an aggravated misdemeanor charge of identification theft under $1,500, and a serious misdemeanor charge of fourth-degree theft, court records show.
On Nov. 1, 2023, Bettendorf Police say Tabac used a victim’s credit/debit card number without authorization to get cash from an automated teller machine (ATM) at the gas station, according to arrest affidavits.
The victim, affidavits say, noticed four ATM withdrawal attempts in Bettendorf at Hy-Vee Fast & Fresh, 3470 Middle Road, with these results:
- First attempt at 2:23 p.m. – $102.50
- Second attempt at 2:23 p.m. – $102.50
- Third attempt at 2:23 p.m. – $102.50
- Fourth attempt at 2:25 P.M. – $102.50
Previously, the victim’s card information had been used without authorization at Kwik Star, 2283 53rd Ave., Bettendorf on June 15, 2023, according to affidavits.
Affidavits say video was obtained from Kwik Star showing the ATM during the transactions. Police say Tabac was observed at the ATM attempting transactions with multiple cards while wearing a hat and sunglasses in the store.
“A still photograph was obtained from Hy-Vee Fast & Fresh for the November 1, 2023, incident,” affidavits say. The suspect from the Kwik Star video was identified as the same person using the victim’s card information at Hy-Vee Fast & Fresh.
An Attempt to Identify Alert was sent state-wide to investigators who are part of the Iowa Law Enforcement Intelligence Network, affidavits show. Photographs taken of Tabac after his Feb. 12, 2024, Clinton arrest identify him as the same person.
The Clinton incidents
In an earlier news release, Clinton Police say they received several reports of credit card fraud in the Clinton area on Jan. 30. After an investigation, officers determined that someone had been using a device to obtain credit card information at 11 businesses in Clinton, according to bank records. A suspect vehicle was identified as a gray 2011 Audi with Illinois registration. The suspect was described as being a man with a gray beanie, blue coat and black pants and shoes.
A license plate reader observed the Audi in Clinton on Feb. 12. Officers found the vehicle in the 400 block of Eighth Avenue South. The only occupant in the vehicle was identified as the suspect from the Jan. 30 incidents. Officers learned that the suspect had just used skimmed cards at three local businesses, the release said.
The man was identified as Sorin Tabac, then 26, from Romania, who “admitted he was in the United States illegally,” the release says. Officers obtained search warrants, which led them to find skimming devices.
Tabac, whose address also is listed as Chicago in court documents, was charged with credit card fraud over $1,500 and under $10,000, a class D felony, and credit card fraud under $1,500, an aggravated misdemeanor. He made an initial appearance in Clinton County Court on Feb. 13.
Tabac was being held on a total $16,000 cash-only bond in Scott County Jail. He is set for a preliminary hearing July 30 in Scott County Court.
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