In its first 18 months, the Texas Financial Crimes Intelligence Center (FCIC) has prevented more than $131,000,000 in monetary losses due to fraud in Texas and recovered 601 credit card skimmers.
The FCIC, which coordinates law enforcement investigations into organized financial fraud, officially opened in Tyler in January 2022. The center is the first of its kind in the United States and was created by House Bill 2106 in the 87th Texas Legislature and operates as a partnership between the Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation (TDLR) and the Smith County District Attorney’s Office. The center’s total two-year budget is $2,650,000.
“We are proud of the excellent work the FCIC has done so far. This Texas initiative is a model for the country of how to effectively fight financial crime, and it is saving Texans millions of dollars already,” said Jacob Putman, Smith County Criminal District Attorney.
The FCIC provided operational results that spans January 2022 through June 2023. The total amount of loss prevented or recovered totaled roughly $131 million. Roughly 600 skimmers were recovered by TDLR and law enforcement agencies.
There was a total of 110 multjurisdictional cases coordinated with 384 suspects identified. Over 5,670 credit cards were recovered. Beyond gas pump skimming, the FCIC has stopped fraud from other types of credit card skimming committed by foreign nationals including ATM and point-of-sale skimming that specifically targets state benefit cards. “The FCIC’s performance has exceeded our expectations,” said TDLR Executive Director Mike Arismendez Jr. “We knew there was a credit card skimmer and financial crimes problem in Texas, but no one expected it to be at this scale. I appreciate the Texas Legislature’s ongoing support for the FCIC, and I’m proud of the work the FCIC has done so far. We have a lot more to do.”