Credit Card Fraud and other credit card theft-related crimes are heavily prosecuted here in Arizona. If you are arrested and/or charged with one of the following please contact us as soon as possible as you will need a skilled and experienced criminal defense attorney to defend your rights . . .

Various Credit Card Fraud Crimes in AZ:

Theft of a credit card or obtaining a credit card by fraudulent means (ARS § 13-2102):

This statute makes the following a Class 5 Felony offense which can be punishable by jail and/or prison time depending on the person’s criminal history:
A person commits theft of a credit card or obtaining a credit card by fraudulent means if the person:

• Controls a credit card without the cardholder’s or issuer’s consent through conduct prescribed in section 13-1802 or 13-1804; or
• Sells, transfers or conveys a credit card with the intent to defraud; or
• With intent to defraud, obtains possession, care, custody or control over a credit card as security for debt.

Receipt of anything of value obtained by fraudulent use of a credit card (ARS § 13-2103):

• This law can be prosecuted as a Class 1 Misdemeanor, a Class 6 Felony, or a Class 5 Felony offense (see below) which can be punishable by jail and/or prison time depending on the person’s criminal history.
  A person, being a third party, commits receipt of anything of value obtained by fraudulent use of a credit card by buying or receiving or attempting to buy or receive money, goods, services or any other thing of value obtained in violation of section 13-2105, knowing or believing that it was so obtained.
• Receipt of anything of value obtained by fraudulent use of a credit card is a class 1 misdemeanor if the value of the property bought or received or attempted to be bought or received is less than two hundred fifty dollars. If the value of the property bought or received or attempted to be bought or received is two hundred fifty dollars or more but less than one thousand dollars the offense is a class 6 felony. If the value of the property bought or received or attempted to be bought or received is one thousand dollars or more the offense is a class 5 felony. Amounts obtained by fraudulent use of a credit card pursuant to one scheme or course of conduct, whether from one or several persons, may be aggregated in determining the classification of offense.

Forgery of credit card (ARS § 13-2104):

This statute makes the following a Class 4 Felony offense which can be punishable by jail and/or prison time depending on the person’s criminal history:
A person, with intent to defraud, alters any credit card, falsely makes, manufactures, fabricates or causes to be made, manufactured or fabricated an instrument or device purporting to be a credit card without the express authorization of an issuer to do so, or falsely embosses or alters a credit card, or instrument or device purporting to be a credit card, or utters such a credit card or instrument or device purporting to be a credit card; or
A person other than the cardholder, with intent to defraud, signs the name of any actual or fictitious person to a credit card or instrument for the payment of money which evidences a credit card transaction.

Fraudulent use of a credit card (ARS § 13-2105):

This law can be prosecuted as a Class 1 Misdemeanor, a Class 6 Felony, or a Class 5 Felony offense (see below) which can be punishable by jail and/or prison time depending on the person’s criminal history.
A person with intent to defraud, uses, for the purposes of obtaining or attempting to obtain money, goods, services or any other thing of value, a credit card or credit card number obtained or retained in violation of this chapter or a credit card or credit card number which the person knows is forged, expired, cancelled or revoked; or
A person obtains or attempts to obtain money, goods, services or any other thing of value by representing, without the consent of the cardholder, that the person is the holder to a specified card or by representing that the person is the holder of a credit card and the card has not in fact been issued.
Fraudulent use of a credit card is a class 1 misdemeanor. If the value of all money, goods, services and other things of value obtained or attempted to be obtained in violation of this section is two hundred fifty dollars or more but less than one thousand dollars in any consecutive six-month period the offense is a class 6 felony. If the value of all money, goods, services and other things of value obtained or attempted to be obtained in violation of this section is one thousand dollars or more in any consecutive six-month period the offense is a class 5 felony.

Possession of machinery, plate or other contrivance or incomplete credit card (ARS § 13-2106):

A person commits possession of machinery, plate or other contrivance or incomplete credit card if such person:

1. Possesses an incomplete credit card with intent to complete it without the express consent of the issuer.
2. Possesses, with intent to defraud and with knowledge of its character, any machinery, plate or any other contrivance designed to reproduce an instrument or device purporting to be the credit card of an issuer who has not consented to the preparation of such credit card.

Possession of machinery, plate or other contrivance or incomplete credit card in subsection A, paragraph 1 is a class 1 misdemeanor and a class 6 felony in subsection A, paragraph 2 which can be punishable by jail and/or prison time depending on the person’s criminal history.

False statement as to financial condition or identity (ARS § 13-2107):

A person commits possession of machinery, plate or other contrivance or incomplete credit card if such person: Possesses an incomplete credit card with intent to complete it without the express consent of the issuer. Or, a person possesses, with intent to defraud and with knowledge of its character, any machinery, plate or any other contrivance designed to reproduce an instrument or device purporting to be the credit card of an issuer who has not consented to the preparation of such credit card.
Possession of machinery, plate or other contrivance or incomplete credit card in subsection A, paragraph 1 is a class 1 misdemeanor and a class 6 felony in subsection A, paragraph 2 which can be punishable by jail and/or prison time depending on the person’s criminal history.

Fraud by person authorized to provide goods or services (ARS § 13-2108):

1. A person commits fraud by a person authorized to provide goods or services if such person knowingly:
   1. Furnishes money, goods, services or any other thing of value upon presentation of a credit card obtained or retained in violation of section 13-2102 or a credit card which such person knows is forged, expired, cancelled or revoked.
   2. Fails to furnish money, goods, services or any other thing of value which such person represents in writing to the issuer or a participating party that such person has furnished, and who receives any payment therefor.
2. Except as provided in subsections C and D, fraud by a person authorized to provide goods or services in subsection A, paragraphs 1 and 2 is a class 1 misdemeanor.
3. If the payment received by the person for all money, goods, services or other things of value furnished in violation of subsection A, paragraph 1 exceeds one hundred dollars in any consecutive six-month period, the offense is a class 6 felony.
4. If the difference between the value of all monies, goods, services or any other thing of value actually furnished and the payment or payments received by the person therefor upon such representation in violation of subsection A, paragraph 2 exceeds one hundred dollars in any consecutive six-month period, the offense is a class 6 felony.

These offenses can be punishable by jail and/or prison time depending on the person’s criminal history.

Credit card transaction record theft (ARS § 13-2109):

1. A person commits credit card transaction record theft by:
   1. If the person is a merchant, knowingly presenting for payment to a participating party, with intent to defraud, a credit card transaction record of a sale that was not made by the merchant.
   2. Knowingly and without the participating party’s authorization commanding, encouraging, requesting or soliciting a merchant to present for payment to the participating party a credit card transaction record of a sale that was not made by the merchant.
2. In order to determine the classification of the offense, the state may aggregate in the indictment or information amounts that were taken from one or more persons in credit card transaction record theft that was committed pursuant to one scheme or course of conduct.
3. Credit card transaction record theft with a value of twenty-five thousand dollars or more is a class 2 felony. Credit card transaction record theft with a value of at least three thousand dollars but less than twenty-five thousand dollars is a class 3 felony. Credit card transaction record theft with a value of at least two thousand dollars but less than three thousand dollars is a class 4 felony. Credit card transaction record theft with a value of at least one thousand dollars but less than two thousand dollars is a class 5 felony. Credit card transaction record theft with a value of at least five hundred dollars but less than one thousand dollars is a class 6 felony. Credit card transaction record theft with a value of less than five hundred dollars is a class 1 misdemeanor.
4. A person who is convicted of a violation of this section that involved an amount of at least one hundred thousand dollars is not eligible for suspension of sentence, probation, pardon, or release from confinement on any other basis except pursuant to section 31-233, subsection A or B until the sentence imposed by the court has been served, the person is eligible for release pursuant to section 41-1604.07 or the sentence is commuted.

These offenses can be punishable by jail and/or prison time depending on the person’s criminal history.

Unlawful possession or use of scanning device or reencoder (ARS § 13-2110):

This statute makes the following a Class 6 Felony offense which can be punishable by jail and/or prison time depending on the person’s criminal history:

1. It is unlawful for a person to use a scanning device or reencoder without the permission of the cardholder of the credit card from which the information is being scanned or reencoded and with the intent to defraud the cardholder, the issuer or a merchant.
2. It is unlawful for a person to intentionally or knowingly make or possess with the intent to commit fraud any device, apparatus, equipment, software, article, material, good, property or supply that is specifically designed or adapted for use as or in a scanning device or a reencoder.