Two arrested in string of credit card thefts

Two Milwaukee men have been arrested on allegations that they took wallets from shoppers at area Pick 'n Save stores, and then used stolen credit cards to buy merchandise at Kmart stores.

Wauwatosa and West Allis police are working together on the case that also includes thefts in Cudahy and West Milwaukee.

According to Wauwatosa police:

A shopper noticed her wallet missing from her purse while she shopped at the Pick 'n Save on Mayfair Road at 5:30 p.m. Friday. Then she remembered a man had been hovering near her cart while she was picking up items that had fallen off a freezer shelf.

She called to cancel her credit cards, but found out they had already been used to purchase a television and camcorder for $900 at the Kmart in Wauwatosa.

The same men re-entered Kmart a few minutes after their initial purchase and filled a cart with another $395 in merchandise. This time the card was declined, so the said they were going to use the automated teller machine, but instead they left the store.

The incident was familiar to those that had occurred in other Milwaukee-area communities.

In Cudahy, a woman's wallet was taken while she shopped and her credit card was used to make $800 in purchases at the Kmart in that city. She was notified by the bank because the purchases exceeded the card limit.

The suspects, 46-year-old and 50-year-old Milwaukee men, were arrested for forgery, theft and possession of stolen property during a similar incident in West Allis.