Ex-Las Vegas resident pleads guilty in gift card fraud scheme

A former Las Vegas resident has pleaded guilty to participating in a counterfeit credit card scheme that spanned at least three states and resulted in more than $382,000 in losses, the Pittsburgh U.S. Attorney’s Office announced Friday.

Yoandy Pou Torres, 38, pleaded guilty Thursday in U.S. District Court in Pittsburgh to one count of conspiracy to commit access device fraud, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office.

Pou Torres and his codefendant, Hector Podio Guitierrez, were accused of using counterfeit credit cards encoded with stolen bank information to purchase more than $382,000 worth of MasterCard gift cards in December 2017 at Sam’s Club stores in the Pittsburgh area, Florida and California. They were arrested at a Sam’s Club in West Mifflin, Pennsylvania.

Pou Torres will be sentenced on Jan. 28. He faces five years in prison and a $250,000 fine, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office. Guitierrez is awaiting trial.

Contact Rio Lacanlale at rlacanlale@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-0381. Follow @riolacanlale on Twitter.