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2022-05-14 01:24:46 By : Mr. Cheng Fei

NEW YORK (1010 WINS) — A Brooklyn man was indicted Monday for making more than 100 fake credit cards which he used to buy luxury items, Brooklyn District Attorney Eric Gonzalez announced.

Police officers searched the Midwood home of 20-year-old Berlioz Florestal in November where they found 110 forged credit and gift cards scattered or hidden throughout his apartment, officials said.

Along with the bogus cards, cops found multiple credit card skimming devices and readers, a credit card embossing machine, three packs of magnetic strips, validation stickers, a forged driver’s license and approximately $3,300 in cash, authorities said.

The counterfeit cards included 40 Visa gift cards, 17 Vanilla gift cards, 32 Mastercard gift cards, and another 21 gift cards from different financial institutions, including Bank of America, Citibank, Capital One, Chase, Discover, Wells Fargo and American Express, the D.A.’s office said.

Florestal allegedly used the credit cards to make elaborate purchases at stores including Gucci and Prada.

In addition to the credit card scheme, Florestal faces charges for a counterfeit North Carolina driver’s license which was found by police officers who were searching him after he was pulled over in Coney Island for tinted windows, officials said.

“This defendant allegedly ran a sophisticated and high-tech operation to manufacture fake credit and gift cards to fund expensive shopping sprees as well as a fake driver’s license,” DA Gonzalez said. “As long as scammers insist on stealing from retailers and financial institutions, my office will continue to do everything we can to ensure that they are stopped and held accountable for their crimes.”

Florestal was charged with 223 counts of fourth-degree criminal possession of a forged instrument and other forgery related charges. He was released without bail and ordered to return to court on July 28, 2022.