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Deputies nab suspects in $150,000 credit card fraud

A two-month investigation by detectives from the San Mateo County Sheriff's Office has netted two suspects who allegedly stole the identity of a Woodside resident and, over two weeks in February, ran up a $150,000 debt on the resident's credit card.

The charges against Andrew Kluchnikov, 47, of San Francisco include identity theft, burglary, theft by fraud, and possessing a false resident-alien card — a green card, said Lt. Marc Alcantera of the Sheriff's Office.

Mr. Kluchnikov is in the county jail in Redwood City with bail set at $2 million.

Also in jail is Michael Tsarevsky, 44, also of San Francisco and charged with identity theft and conspiracy. He is on no-bail status at the request of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement.

Both men are considered flight risks, Lt. Alcantera said.

Detectives based the charges on evidence gathered at the men's homes in San Francisco, he said.

The alleged crime spree got going after a theft of the Woodside resident's mail, said Lt. Alcantera, who "strongly encourages" residents to use locking mailboxes and to report on suspicious persons seen in their neighborhoods.

Posted by jhon, a resident of the Woodside: Emerald Hills neighborhood, on Nov 23, 2008 at 3:59 pm

Are they in jail now? Im sure this is not their first time. What kind of sentence will they get?

Posted by Eastern Euro Mob?, a resident of the Menlo Park: Downtown neighborhood, on Dec 3, 2008 at 3:24 pm

Maybe my imagination is a bit too vivid, but just wondering if there are organized crime elements in this case.