Santa Barbara police searching for four men believed to be involved in ATM skimming

SANTA BARBARA, Calif. -- Santa Barbara police are searching for four men believed to be involved in ATM skimming on Monday.

Santa Barbara police are looking for four men believed to be involved in nearly a dozen fraudulent ATM withdrawals from the Bank of America at 3790 State Street.

Detectives that are investigating these thefts found that over a two-week period, beginning July 14, a four-person crew stole debit card information from ATM machines at the Bank of America branch.

Detectives say the men used a concealed skimming device to steal information. The suspect then used the stolen information to withdraw thousands of dollars from the victims' accounts.

The skimming has primarily affected victims with California Employment Development Department, or EDD, debit cards. These debit cards do not have EMV security chips.

Detectives believe the suspects operate in the early morning hours and occasionally used ATMs alongside legitimate customers. Detectives suspect that the crew may have stayed at a local hotel due to them using the ATM in the early morning hours.

Anyone with information regarding this crime is urged to contact Santa Barbara police detective Kyle Rapp at 805-897-2331 or email him at krapp@sbpd.com.