Police responded to two reports of skimmer devices attached to ATMs at local hospitals this week.
One was discovered on the same ATM located near the lobby gift shop at Inova Fairfax Hospital on Tuesday. A hospital employee noticed that the input slot for the card was loose and wobbly; when she inserted her bank card, the device fell off. She immediately reported it to security, who contacted police. Detectives feel that the device may have been on the machine for weeks and urge anyone who used the machine to monitor their financial statements closely.
A second device was discovered on a machine located in the Inova Fair Oaks Hospital lobby adjacent to the cafeteria yesterday around 1 p.m. A hospital security guard discovered the device after being notified of the prior incident. Neither of these bank machines are either owned or “monitored” by Inova staff. They are located on hospital property but banking institutions are responsible for their maintenance and management.
Detectives urge consumers who may have used either of these machines in recent weeks to check their bank statements closely. If they detect inconsistencies in their transactions, they should contact their bank and the police.
In September, police responded to the Inova Fairfax Hospital Cardiac Care Center and removed a skimmer from the ATM machine located in the lobby near the gift shop. They believe thieves attached the skimmer to the machine in late August and had been stealing thousands from unsuspecting employees, patients, friends and family members at the hospital.
