Jasmine Stole

jstole@guampdn.com

Two Chinese nationals who arrived on Guam from Hong Kong never made it out of the airport after border security searched them and found bundles of credit cards in their baggage, according to a statement from the Guam Customs and Quarantine Agency.

The incident happened in early October. Federal Customs and Border Protection officials flagged down two Chinese travelers and requested local Customs officers to inspect their luggage, the statement said.

The pair were taken to local Customs’ sterile area, where officials found bundles of credit cards among their possessions.

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Officials do not know exactly how many credit cards were in the bundle, said Jessi Jon Santos, spokeswoman for GCQA.

As to what the pair might have wanted to do with the cards, Santos said that also is not known. “Of course, we can't speculate as to its use or the passengers' intent either,” Santos said.

No credit card skimming device, card scanner or anything else similar was found with the pair, according to GCQA. The passengers and their belongings were returned to their place of origin, Santos said.

Skimming is a type of credit card fraud in which a device, sometimes placed on an existing ATM, is used to steal credit card information, which is then copied onto blank credit cards that are used for unauthorized purchases.

In April, First Hawaiian Bank stated it believes some of its ATMs in Saipan were involved in a skimming incident, in which customers' bank card information was stolen.

No items were seized by local Customs officials and the two individuals were sent back to Hong Kong on the next flight out. Their identities were not released by officials.

Guam Customs Director James McDonald said in a statement that this incident is one example of collaborative efforts between local and federal agencies to protect the island’s borders. “We will continue to work together, protecting against criminal activity, McDonald said.

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