Thief Tries Paying Waitress With Her Own Stolen Credit Card, Gets Arrested

An Arkansas man was arrested Tuesday when he tried to pay for a meal using the stolen credit card that belonged to the waitress who served him. The card was stolen on Sunday at a nearby gas station.

Shamon West, 21, was arrested at the Shannon's Restaurant in Pine Bluff, two blocks away from where the robbery happened, after waitress Flora Lunsford called the police to report that the man tried paying the bill with her stolen credit card.

Police spokesman Lt. David De Foor said that West was also found with other things belonging to Lunsford, including her Social Security card and driver’s license that was kept in her purse.

"The driver's license, as all do, had her picture on it. Therefore, you would think he should have known what she looked like. Yet, he still handed her own credit card to her," police said, Fox 40 reported.

Surveillance video at the gas station showed Lunsford getting into a store while West is present at the station. He moves toward the car, steals her purse and gets back into his car.

He then drives to the side of the store, where another man gets in the car and they drive away, without paying for gas. The other man also shoplifts a drink from the gas station, ABC affiliated KATV reported.

Court records showed that West faces charges of theft and was being held at the Jefferson County jail on a $2,840 (£2,140) bond. It wasn’t clear if West had obtained an attorney as of early Thursday.

In March 2016, a man used a stolen credit card information to buy $100,000 of merchandise in Detroit, Michigan, Michigan Live reported. Police searched two Detroit homes after arresting Deandre Calhoun, 27, where they found properties such as a sofa, television and collectible coins bought with stolen account numbers.

Hundreds of credit cards, Social Security and credit card numbers, personal information and equipment to encode magnetic strips on credit cards were found at the suspect’s house.

Not many know what to do if your credit card is stolen.

Firstly, as soon as the card is lost, the owner must contact the bank, dispute the charges and ask to close the account or lock it. The financial institution will deactivate the card and give a new credit card number to prevent fraudulent use of your account.

Then the owner must look at card statements and take a note of purchases not made by him and contact the bank at the earliest, Capital One reported.