Credit Card Offense Lawyer with over 20 years of experience.

Serving Manassas, Woodbridge, Leesburg, Fairfax, Centreville, Gainesville, Warrenton,
Dale City, Dumfries, Haymarket, Herndon, Reston,Alexandria and all locations in Prince William County, Fairfax County, Fauquier County, Stafford County, Loudoun County, Culpepper County, and Spotsylvania County.

The Code of Virginia has numerous types of criminal offenses involving credit cards.

For over 20 years The Law Office of James J. McCoart, III, has fought vigorously when representing persons accused of credit card offenses.

When a person is accused of a criminal credit card offense it is often one of the following:

• Credit Card Theft
• Credit Card Forgery
• Credit Card Fraud
• Credit Card Conspiracy

Each crime of credit card theft is grand larceny, and, as such, is punishable by imprisonment for 1 to 20 years, or in the discretion of the jury or court trying the case without a jury, by confinement in jail for a period not exceeding twelve months or a fine not more than $2,500.00, either or both.

A person is guilty of credit card or credit card number theft when:

• He takes, obtains or withholds a credit card or credit card number from the person, possession, custody or control of another without the cardholder’s consent or who, with knowledge that it has been so taken, obtained or withheld, receives the credit card or credit card number with intent to use it or sell it, or to transfer it to a person other than the issuer or the cardholder; or
• He receives a credit card or credit card number that he knows to have been lost, mislaid, or delivered under a mistake as to the identity or address of the cardholder, and who retains possession with intent to use, to sell or to transfer the credit card or credit card number to a person other than the issuer or the cardholder; or
• He, not being the issuer, sells a credit card or credit card number or buys a credit card or credit card number from a person other than the issuer; or
• He, not being the issuer, during any twelve-month period, receives credit cards or credit card numbers issued in the names of two or more persons which he has reason to know were taken or retained under circumstances which constitute a violation of § 18.2-194 and subdivision (1) (c) of this section.

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Credit Card Forgery is a Class 5 felony, and as such, is punishable by a term of imprisonment of 1 to 10 years, or in the discretion of the jury or the court trying the case without a jury, confinement is jail up to twelve month and a fine up to $2,500.00, either or both.

A person is guilty of credit card forgery when:

• With intent to defraud a purported issuer, a person or organization providing money, goods, services or anything else of value, or any other person, he falsely makes or falsely embosses a purported credit card or utters such a credit card; or
• He, not being the cardholder or a person authorized by him, with intent to defraud the issuer, or a person or organization providing money, goods, services or anything else of value, or any other person, signs a credit card; or
• He, not being the cardholder or a person authorized by him, with intent to defraud the issuer, or a person or organization providing money, goods, services or anything else of value, or any other person, forges a sales draft or cash advance/withdrawal draft, or uses a credit card number of a card of which he is not the cardholder, or utters, or attempts to employ as true, such forged draft knowing it to be forged.

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Credit Card Fraud is punishable either as a Class 1 misdemeanor or a Class 6 felony.

Such crime is a Class 1 misdemeanor if, the value of all money, good, services and other things of value furnished in violation of this section, or if the difference between the value of all money, good, services and anything else of value actually furnished and the value represented to the issuer to have been furnished in violation of this section, does not exceed $200.00 in any six-month period.

Credit card fraud is punishable as a Class 6 felony if such value exceeds $200.00 in any six-month period.

A person is guilty of credit card fraud when, with intent to defraud any person, he:

• Uses for the purpose of obtaining money, goods, services or anything else of value a credit card or credit card number obtained or retained in violation of § 18.2-192 or a credit card or credit card number which he knows is expired or revoked;
• Obtains money, goods, services or anything else of value by representing (i) without the consent of the cardholder that he is the holder of a specified card or credit card number or (ii) that he is the holder of a card or credit card number and such card or credit card number has not in fact been issued;
• Obtains control over a credit card or credit card number as security for debt; or
• Obtains money from an issuer by use of an unmanned device of the issuer or through a person other than the issuer when he knows that such advance will exceed his available credit with the issuer and any available balances held by the issuer.

A person who is authorized by an issuer to furnish money, goods, services or anything else of value upon presentation of a credit card or credit card number by the cardholder, or any agent or employee of such person, is guilty of a credit card fraud when, with intent to defraud the issuer or the cardholder, he:

• Furnishes money, goods, services or anything else of value upon presentation of a credit card or credit card number obtained or retained in violation of § 18.2-192, or a credit card or credit card number which he knows is expired or revoked;
• Fails to furnish money, goods, services or anything else of value which he represents or causes to be represented in writing or by any other means to the issuer that he has furnished; or
• Remits to an issuer or acquirer a record of a credit card or credit card number transaction which is in excess of the monetary amount authorized by the cardholder.

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Any person who conspires, confederates or combines with another, either within or without the Commonwealth to commit credit card fraud within the Commonwealth or within the Commonwealth to commit credit card fraud within or with the Commonwealth, is guilty of a Class 6 felony.

For over 20 years James J. McCoart, III, has represented clients accused of credit card offenses. If you are interested in discussing your credit card charges with an experienced attorney, then contact The Law Office of James J. McCoart, III, by telephone (703) 369-2734, or by email.

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