Delaware State Police have arrested a Philadelphia man for using illegally skimmed payment cards at a Newark gas station yesterday afternoon officials said Monday.
Troopers said on November 20, 2022, at approximately 3:38 p.m., troopers responded to the Sunoco located at 520 JFK Memorial Highway regarding a suspicious subject who had been observed using numerous payment cards at a gas pump. Troopers contacted 28-year-old Edward Whitefield-Dukes, who was filling a large fuel tank in the bed of his rental pickup truck.
While speaking with troopers, Whitefield-Dukes discarded a credit card reader and writer into a nearby trashcan according to police. Troopers recovered the device and Whitefield-Dukes was taken into custody at the scene without incident. A search of Whitefield-Dukes’ truck led to the discovery of numerous Wawa gift cards that were encoded with various credit card numbers from different financial institutions that were not associated with Wawa.
Whitefield-Dukes was transported to Troop 6 and charged with the following crimes:
- Possession of a Payment Card Scanning Device (Felony)
- Possession of Instruments Facilitating Identity Theft (Felony) – 10 counts
- Theft Under $1,500
Whitefield-Dukes was arraigned by Justice of the Peace Court # 11 and committed to Howard R. Young Correctional Institution on $42,000 cash bond.
This case was investigated with the assistance of the FBI.