Full Notification

On Wednesday evening, Central Marin Police Officers were alerted to suspicious activity at Marin Gas in Larkspur.  Our jurisdiction, and the Bay Area in general, has dealt with gas station “skimming” - an illegal practice used by identity thieves to capture credit card information from a cardholder surreptitiously.  Many of our citizens, as well as a Central Marin Police Officer, have been victims of this crime in the last few months.   

Officers arrived at Marin Gas and contacted the individual suspected of criminal activity. The individual was identified and was shown to be on active probation out of Contra Costa County for theft related crimes.  Further investigation and a probation search revealed the suspect possessed numerous gift cards, burglary tools, and a scanning device which could be used to obtain information from any card with a magnetic strip, including credit cards.  Four large containers of gasoline were located in the bed of the suspect’s truck, which was towed and stored as evidence.

Ultimately, the suspect was arrested and booked into Marin County Jail for grand theft, possession of burglary tools, and unlawful possession of a scanning device.  The arresting officer, along with Central Marin Detectives, will continue to investigate these crimes to hopefully identify victims of identity theft.