Around the world in search of ID thieves

Jeff Ball is pouring through his records trying to help Dateline crack an international identity theft ring.

We’re on the hunt for “Wendy,” the woman in seductive photos who conned Jeff into shipping what turned out to be merchandise purchased with stolen credit cards.

Like an expensive home theater system it was so big it cost more than $2,000 to ship.

We’re on the trail of that home theater system because we think it might lead us to “Wendy,” down this dusty road, in the tiny African nation of Benin.

Benin, a former French colony, was a hub back during the time of the slave trade and today, is increasingly a hub for identity thieves. Busy African markets are where some of the merchandise ordered from stolen American credit cards can show up.  The identity thieves didn’t pay a dime for the things they got, so even if they sell them cheap, they still make a huge profit.

It’s not an easy or a safe place for American journalists to operate.   We’re not sure who we can trust and don’t know if the criminals have corrupted any local officials.   So we proceed with caution.

Down the road, we find the address where “Wendy” told Jeff Ball to ship the home theatre system.

It’s to the home of a man named Mr. Tchao.

Chris Hansen (on hidden camera): Ali Angelo Tchao...

Neighbor: Ah oui...

Chris Hansen: Yeah, Tchao lives there?

Neighbor: Yeah, yeah, yeah.

Hansen: Do you know him?

A neighbor tells us Mr. Tchao is at work.

Neighbor:  He’s working at port.

Hansen:  Where? At the port.

Neighbor: Yes.

Hansen: And what does he do at the port?

Neighbor:  Well, some people come from Nigerias, come meet here to buy cars.

Hansen: So, he buys the cars here and sells them in Nigeria...

Neighbor: Yes, yes.

Hansen: Do you think it’s okay if go back and ask?

Apparently, Mr. Tchao is involved in the import-export business. 

It certainly doesn’t look like he’s got a theater system at his home down an alley.

Hansen: We’re asking about a delivery. A big delivery from DHL.

Neighbor: DHL.

Hansen: The shipping company.  It was, it was a big home theatre, television set?

Neighbor: Television filosau [sp. translates local language]

Girl: [local language]

Neighbor: She said that, she said that, she said that she didn’t know.  If you people can come back in the evening.

Hansen: Yeah, and talk to him.

Neighbor: and see him himself,

Hansen: Yeah.

Neighbor: And talk to him.

Hansen: Bon soir.

So later that evening, we do come back. But Mr. Tchao hasn’t come home.

Hansen:  Oh, Pascal, that’s right we talked earlier. 

Neighbor: Yes, this morning.

Hansen: Yeah, is Mr. Tchao around?

Neighbor:  No he’s not here. I don’t know when he’ll be back.

I get Mr. Tchao’s cell phone number.

Chris phone call:  Monsieur Tchao? Oui.  My name is Chris and I wanted to ask you about a package that DHL says was delivered to you in October. It’s a home theatre system. Did you receive that package?

Mr. Tchao admits he did get it.

Hansen:  So, you did actually receive the home theatre system? …in um October?

But he doesn’t want to say where it went.

Hansen:  From when you received it, where did the home theatre system go after it came to your house? I’m sorry, you did receive it? Alright. Thank you very much. Bye now. 

By now, it’s clear we’re going to have a tough time finding “Wendy” and the thieves by tracking down a package after it’s been delivered.

But we want to get as close to the thieves as we can, so we decide follow a package from the very start.

Vickie Beebout: I already boxed up the shoes and stuff.

Back in California, Vickie Beebout has been collecting packages for her online boyfriend “Paul.”

But, now, she realizes she’s been scammed, too. And like Jeff Ball, Vickie has agreed to work with us to track a shipment.

Paul still thinks he has her on the hook, so he’s asking her to send another shipment. He’s ordered an Xbox from our online store, again with a stolen credit card.

And in an instant message he tells Vickie he wants it sent to that same small country in Africa, Benin. To help follow the package, we install sophisticated tracking devices—and hide them inside.

A transmitter will send out a signal, and we’ll hear a beeping noise on this receiver whenever the package is nearby.

On the outside, we mark the box with distinctive yellow stickers.

Next, we take it to a DHL office near Vicki’s home in California. Three days later, the DHL Website shows the package is in Africa.

And, remember, so are we.

Our tracker locates the signal of our X-box in the customs building at the airport. But a few hours later, the signal disappears. And the DHL Website says our package has been picked up.

So we set off in search of our Xbox.

First stop: the address where it was supposed to be delivered.  Turns out it’s a lawyer’s office.

Chris Hansen, Dateline correspondent (on hidden camera): I’m looking for a Monsieur Houssou Immocent.

The receptionist says he doesn’t have a clue what we’re talking about.  Knows nothing about the package—doesn’t even recognize the name.

Hansen: So you don’t know the name? 

Producer: Il ne travaille pas ici?

Hansen: And what about this address?

What’s more, he says the shipping address seems to be phony, intentionally jumbled. 

Although the street name and number match this office, the zip code and town are all wrong.

And when we double-check at the local post office, they confirm the address isn’t real.

Next stop: DHL.

Maybe they know where our X-box went.

Hansen: Bonjour. G’morning, i’m trying to track a package that I had shipped.

The customer rep checks the computer and calls out to the airport, where they confirm that package was picked up by the man it was addressed to.

Hansen: Okay, so, he’s the one that picked it up at the airport?

DHL Rep: Yes.

Hansen:  Okay, alright.

DHL Rep: What they put in the system. But I see that you are English people so I tell maybe you want to, you want to know more.

Hansen: No, no, no.  I’m very appreciative, and I thank you very much.

Now we’re more baffled than ever. So we ask the local police if they can help us find our package.

They send an investigator to the airport, but he’s told to come back later.

At Benin’s National Police Headquarters, the director admits these Internet frauds are among his country’s biggest problems.

Antoine Azonhoume, Benin National Police Headquarters: This is a form of organized crime.

And he says his country has fallen victim to criminals coming from the country next door Nigeria, a well-known haven for identity thieves. 

Why would Nigerian criminals use another country as a drop point for stolen goods?

There’s been so much publicity about rip-off schemes from Nigeria that many of the Internet thieves have discovered it can be hard sometimes to get people from the United States to ship there.  So, some of the thieves have come here to Benin, a tiny West African country most people don’t know anything about.

Antoine Azonhoume: They use Benin because our country is a little weak.  It’s a small country, and we don’t have great resources to investigate. 

Authorities say most of the fraud originates in Internet cafes like one we were able to get a rare look inside with Dateline’s hidden cameras.  In an e-mail or instant message, a thief can hide behind a computer screen and pretend to be anyone, anywhere. In Africa could even steal a picture off the Internet and become “Paul” or even “Wendy”.

And while some of the people we see in this Internet cafe may be perfectly honest—some even tourists— police say criminal rings conduct their business there, stealing from Americans from half a world away.

And that brings us back to our C-box package with the tracker inside. There’s still no sign of it.

The police go back to the airport and, believe it or not, they’re told our package has mysteriously been found, still inside customs, as if it had never left the building.

That’s odd. Remember, just the day before, DHL told us it had been picked up.

So, which story is true?

To double-check, we go to the airport and arrange to see the package ourselves.  It looks like it’s had a rough trip, but the tracker inside is still putting out a strong signal.

Police sources tell us they think the thieves heard we were asking questions and decided the package must be “hot.”

To avoid being caught, they apparently smuggled it back inside customs and left it.

The criminals are trying to duck us. But we have another option to catch up with them, and it involves Jeff Ball, the man in New York... and “Wendy”, the thief who stole his money, and his heart.

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Part I: On the hunt for ID thieves Around the world in search of ID thieves Behind the year-long investigation What we learned from the online store HansenDiscountElectronics.com Do you know 'Paul Desmond'? More on Card Cops Tips on protecting your identity 'To Catch an ID Thief' Section Front   Add 'To Catch an ID Thief' headlines to your news reader: