Credit Card Thief Racks Up $17,000 in Charges at St. Louis Target Stores

Chesterfield Police are looking for a woman who is believed to have used stolen credit cards to buy thousands of dollars’ worth of gift cards and make other charges at Target stores in Chesterfield and throughout the St. Louis area.

The suspect is thought to be behind two separate incidents, according to police. The first occurred on Dec. 22, 2012, when an individual eating at a Chesterfield area restaurant had three credit cards stolen from her purse.

Chesterfield Lt. Michael Thompson said these cards were later used at the Chesterfield Target store for more than $7,000 in cash advances.

The suspect then allegedly struck again on Jan. 12, this time targeting a purse at a salon and grabbing three more credit cards. These were used at Target store in St. Charles County and Bridgeton for charges totaling just under $10,000.

Thompson said the majority of the $17,000 in charges was for pre-paid gift cards. Police are still waiting to receive detailed transaction data from the credit card companies and the individual stores.

In the meantime, police are asking for the public’s help in identifying the suspect. Anyone with information should call the Chesterfield Police Department at 636-537-3000.