Chinese crime ring targets CVS stores in Greenwich

Two Chinese men from Queens, NY are facing multiple charges for using stolen credit card information to purchase gift cards at two CVS stores in Greenwich.

Yao Qi Wu, 29, and Hao Wei Lin, 34, are part of a Chinese Organized Crime Group based out of New York City, that uses mail theft, ID theft and other methods to obtain credit card information. That financial data is then used to purchase gift cards through Apple Pay that circumvents the store's ability to examine the credit card.

The two men were spotted purchasing multiple gift cards in the afternoon of January 25, 2025 at the CVS store on Greenwich Avenue and the CVS store in Cos Cob. They used different cards for every purchase. Police found five counterfeit driver's licenses, a cellphone with financial data on 15 stolen credit cards and several bags of the drug ketamine. Lin has an arrest record in New Jersey, Virginia and Nevada on charges of credit card theft, fraud, burglary and larceny.

Between the Lines: A Mandarin Chinese-speaking interpreter was assigned to the court proceedings - at CT taxpayer expense.

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