Local credit card thief is smoking
Shows appetite for two brands
Published: December 09, 2009, 12:30 am
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An appetite for Marlboro and Newport cigarettes seems to be motivating a local credit card thief.
In a string of nearly identical crimes throughout the county, from Orchard Park to Cheektowaga, the scenario has played out several times in recent weeks: The man steals a single credit card — leaving the wallet behind — then goes to a couple of nearby gas stations or convenience stores to buy cartons of those two brands of cigarettes.
He stole a credit card from an office in St. Joseph Hospital, Cheektowaga, at about 11 a. m. Oct. 27, then went to Jim’s Truck Stop on Walden Avenue, where he spent $315 on gas and cigarettes, according to Cheektowaga Detective Terry Griffin. The man’s next stop was down the road at Delta Sonic, where he spent $83 on cigarettes.
The next day, he stole a credit card out of a locker in the YMCA on Southwestern Boulevard, West Seneca, then stopped at a Wilson Farms in West Seneca and a Delta Sonic in Orchard Park, according to West Seneca Detective Daniel Crowe. The man spent about $100 on cigarettes at each place.
At about 6 p. m. Nov. 4, the man stole a credit card out of a wallet from the coaches’ room at the West Seneca Ice Rink on Union Road. Within minutes, he went to the Mobil at Center and Union roads, where he bought $147 in cigarettes. The next stop was a Sunoco station nearby, where he spent $155 on cigarettes.
The man also is believed to have stolen credit cards in Buffalo and Orchard Park to buy Marlboro and Newport cigarettes, police said.
Surveillance cameras have captured a picture of the suspect in at least three locations. He is described as a white male 30 to 35 years old, about 5 feet, 8 inches tall, average build, usually with a five o’clock shadow, and wearing a ring on his pinky finger. He drives a black, late-model Ford Explorer with a stainless steel running board.
Anyone with information is asked to call West Seneca detectives at 674-3154 or the confidential tip line in West Seneca, 675-8423.
mpasciak@buffnews.com
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