Well-heeled diners at some of New York’s finest restaurants were blind-sided by about two dozen waiters who were arrested for being part of an alleged credit card skimming ring.
Waiters at upscale restaurants such as Smith & Wollensky, Wolfgang Steak and Capital Grill were allegedly among the culprits, and wait staff at Morton’s in Stamford, Conn., and Bicycle Club in New Jersey were also booked.
According to reports, servers especially liked swiping American Express Black cards, one of the most elite forms of plastic for the wealthy, along with other top-scale cards.
The servers allegedly used handheld skimming devices as they took the cards to pay for the bill. The waiters then worked with professional card counterfeiters to produce cloned cards and went on shopping sprees for luxury goods such as Chanel bags and Jimmy Choo shoes, which they later sold for cash.
Law enforcement officials estimate they pocketed at least $1 million.
