The Arlington Police Department’s Economic Crimes Unit (ECU) is an investigative unit within the Special Investigations Section operationally under the Central Investigations Division. The ECU consists of one administrative assistant, three detectives, one civilian investigator, and it is supervised by a sergeant.
The ECU investigates fraud related offenses to include forgery, credit/debit card abuse, fraudulent use or possession of identifying information, counterfeit merchandise,
and certain computer crimes. The ECU also houses the Digital Forensics Lab. The Digital Forensics Lab, created in 1999, is responsible for examining and processing
electronic evidence that is collected from a wide variety of investigations.
If the crime is in progress, call 911. Otherwise, you can generate a report for Identity Theft online at File A Crime Report or by calling 817-274-4444. When generating your report, make sure you have all of your documents available so you can include transaction dates, times, locations, and any other pertinent information regarding how your identity was used fraudulently. Please save all documents related to your case. Your report will be reviewed and if it is determined there is sufficient information available to proceed with an investigation, you will be contacted by an investigator.
Frequently Asked Questions:
Question 1: Someone has written me a check that has
returned NSF or closed account. What should I do?
Answer: The
Arlington Police Department does not investigate these offenses. These
are referred directly to the Tarrant County District Attorney’s Office
at http://www.tarrantda.com/?page_id=641.
Question 2: I represent a business and want to report a
forged check or credit card abuse that occurred at my place of business
in Arlington. What should I do?
Answer: Complete the
forgery/credit
card abuse self report form and mail it to the address listed on the
form. Please provide us with all the documents related to the offense, a
full narrative describing the events and how the suspect was identified
if applicable. Include a disk with the video of the transaction if
captured by video surveillance and notate the time frame of the
transaction on the disk. Incomplete reports will not be
processed. We will contact you with a report number once the report is
entered.
Question 3: I am a victim of ID theft. What should I
do?
Answer: If you are an Arlington resident or your information has
been used fraudulently in the city of Arlington you should make a police
report with us. You should refer to the Federal Trade Commission’s
website listed below and follow the recommended steps to help you restore
your credit. Please note that if you believe someone has been arrested
or issued a citation using your information then you will need to
contact the law enforcement agency where the incident occurred.
Question 4: I am a victim of tax refund ID theft. What should I do?
Answer: Please follow the guidelines and prevention strategies at the IRS link below as
certain forms must be filed with the IRS. A police report can be generated if you are an Arlington resident
by calling the above number.
Question 5: Someone has written checks
on my checking account without my permission. What do I do?
Answer:
Immediately contact your bank in order to close the account and file a
police report for forgery with us if the checks were passed in
Arlington. Your checks may have been stolen or someone may have created
counterfeit checks using your bank account and routing numbers. Please
work with your bank to provide specific information when and where your
check was passed; provide witness and suspect information if known and
the name and contact number for the bank investigator if one has been
assigned.
Question 6: Someone has used my credit card/debit
card without my permission. What do I do?
Answer: Immediately contact
your credit card company in order to close the account and file a police
report for credit card/debit card abuse with us if the transaction
occurred in Arlington. You may also make a police report with us if you
are an Arlington resident and your card was used online. The Arlington
Police Department will consider investigation of these offenses only
when the entity that suffers the financial loss desires prosecution.
Question 7: I am the victim of an Internet scam, for example, I
have purchased or sold an item through an online classified
advertisement website and later realized I was scammed. Who do I do?
Answer: You should
file a complaint with the Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3), a
central repository for Internet related crime coordinated by the
National White
Collar Crime Center and the FBI. The IC3 forwards complaints to the
Arlington Police Department when it appears the fraudulent activity is
occurring in Arlington. Since the suspects involved in these types of
crimes are often overseas and typically use fictitious names, addresses,
phone numbers, and email addresses, the Arlington Police Department is
very selective determining which complaints to investigate. Please refer
to the IC3 link and the Little Black Book of Scams booklet in the
additional information section below to learn more about the different
types of frauds and schemes and how to protect yourself from being
victimized.
Question 8: I believe my computer, phone, tablet,
etc. has been hacked or has a virus. What do I do now?
Answer:
There is no way to protect the data stored on your computer
100%, so taking additional steps is wise.
Make sure your electronic device has the most recent and up to date anti-virus/anti-malware software and conduct a scan of the computer. Sometimes the best anti-virus programs can not remove the virus and therefore requires a re-install of the operating system to guarantee the virus is removed. Prior to doing this, it is recommended important files are backed up to an external storage device, like a USB thumb drive or CD/DVD recordable media. A credible computer repair business can also provide these services.
Be cautious of emails or text messages from unknown senders. Legitimate business emails will NEVER ask for personal identifying information and/or logins and passwords. Do not open email attachments from senders you do not know. If you believe your electronic device has been compromised, immediately remove it from the network and/or internet.
You can consider encrypting important files; if the computer is maliciously accessed then the files will not be readily viewable. Many of the current operating systems offer free encryption programs.
If you believe your personal information was compromised from the hack or virus program then you should change all account passwords and monitor your accounts for fraudulent activity (also see annual credit report in additional useful information). If fraudulent activity is noticed, then contact the Arlington Police Department to file an offense report.
Ultimately, awareness is the most
important deterrent to viruses and computer hacks.
CONTACT US:
Arlington Police - Economic Crimes Unit
817-459-5591
Additional Useful Information
Social Security Administration
If you suspect someone is using your social security number to
obtain employment, contact the Social Security
Administration’s fraud hotline at 1-800-269-0271. Order a
copy of your Personal Earnings and Benefit Estimate
Statement (PEBES) to check the accuracy of your work
history on file with the Social Security Administration. You
can obtain a PEBES application at your local Social
Security office or at http://www.ssa.gov/online/ssa-7004.pdf .
IRS
The IRS established the Identity Protection Unit to assist
taxpayers resolve identity theft issues. Victims can call
800-908-4490 Monday – Friday, 8 a.m. to 8 p.m.
Additional information is available at http://www.irs.gov/uac/Taxpayer-Guide-to-Identity-Theft .
Federal Trade Commission
This website is a one-stop national resource to learn
about the crime of identity theft. It provides detailed
information to help you deter, detect, and defend against
identity theft.
http://www.ftc.gov/bcp/edu/microsites/idtheft/ .
Attorney General Of Texas
The Office of the Attorney General provides useful
information related to identity theft. A step by step
resource guide is available at
www.texasfightsidtheft.gov .
Internet Crime Complainant Center
Internet Crime Complainant Center (IC3) is an alliance
between the National White Collar Crime Center and the
Federal Bureau of Investigation. It provides a central
point to report internet based crime.
www.ic3.gov .
Little Black Book of Scams This booklet describes the many types of frauds and Internet scams that suspects use to target citizens and steal their money. It was originally developed by the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission and reproduced by the Canadian Competition Bureau.
US Postal Inspection Service
If you suspect that your mail has been stolen or diverted
with a false change-of-address request, contact your
local postal inspector at https://postalinspectors.uspis.gov/
or by calling 800-275-8777.
Annual Credit Report
This central site allows you to request a free credit report,
once every 12 months from each of the nationwide
consumer credit reporting companies: Equifax, Experian
and TransUnion.
https://www.annualcreditreport.com .
