LOUDONVILLE — A routine traffic stop the afternoon of Thursday, Aug. 23, led Loudonville police to arrest two people for possession of credit-card skimming devices, ATM faceplates and other credit-card-making materials.



The case has officially been turned over to the FBI for follow-up investigation and federal prosecution, Loudonville Police Chief Kevin Taylor said Thursday in a prepared statement.



According to Taylor, while on routine patrol at 5:18 p.m. Thursday, Aug. 23, two Loudonville patrolmen stopped a vehicle for a traffic violation at the intersection of South Brentwood Drive and South Park Place in the southeast corner of the village downtown.



During the stop, Taylor continued, "officers became suspicious of the circumstances and requested to search the vehicle. After consent was given, officers began to find evidence of credit card skimming devices inside the vehicle."



At this point, the FBI was notified and it soon dispatched an agent to the scene. The driver of the vehicle, Arrinton De Jesus Soto Bedoya, 37, a resident of the Republic of Colombia, was taken into custody and taken to the Ashland County Jail. A search warrant was then obtained at the Loudonville residence where Soto Bedoya was staying at 141 1/2 W. Main St.



There, Taylor said, "officers from the Ohio Bureau of Criminal Investigation located inside the residence additional credit card skimming devices, ATM faceplates in various stages of manufacture, along with other credit card-making materials."



The next day, police arrested Manuel Antonio Nieto Mora, 33, from Venezuela, who also was taken to the Ashland County Jail.



According to Taylor, "at this point, it is not believed that the skimming devices were used within the village of Loudonville."