NCJ Number
174943
Journal
FBI Law Enforcement Bulletin Volume: 66 Issue: 4 Dated: April 1997 Pages: 1-8
Date Published
1997
Length
8 pages
Annotation
The prosecutor and police in Jacksonville, Fla., initiated a sting operation designed to address cellular phone fraud; law enforcement officers posed as telephone cloners who would, for a fee, reprogram stolen or inoperative cellular phones with numbers purportedly stolen from real cellular phone customers.
Abstract
Investigators from the State attorney's office collaborated with agents from the United States Secret Service, whose jurisdiction includes cellular phone fraud, and the Naval Criminal Investigative Service, because of the large naval presence in Jacksonville. They obtained a storefront location, renovated the building, set up a waiting area in the front room, used a back room for cloning, and used another room for monitoring transactions via hidden microphones and cameras. A cellular phone provider provided free equipment and air time. The investigators operated strictly on a referral basis. They gave business cards to informants, who spread the word among drug dealers, prostitutes, burglars, and others engaged in criminal activities. They told potential customers that the services were illegal; recordings of these initial phone conversations revealed the suspects' predisposition to commit crimes and prevented them from successfully using entrapment defenses later in court. Investigators conducted 172 transactions with 98 suspects in 36 working days; the State attorney's office issued arrest warrants for 92 cases. Every plea agreement required full restitution; the suspects with no arrest history had the opportunity to enter pretrial intervention programs after signing deferred prosecution agreements. The program cost less than $3,000 other than salaries and equipment; its customers stole more than $165,000 in air time. Operation Cellmate focused attention on a new program and proved the success of collaborative efforts involving law enforcement and the private sector in using new technology and a traditional sting operation. Photographs and endnote