Last week, officers responded to a hotel at the 2600 block of Newport Boulevard reference unauthorized credit card transactions at the location reported by the owner of the credit card, which was ordered but never received in the mail, according to the Costa Mesa Police Department.
Officers quickly identified two suspects who had used that stolen credit card.
The vehicle they were using was at the location and had been reported stolen from Los Angeles. Officers were able to contact the female suspect in the suspects’ hotel room. There, officers found numerous blank business checks, laptop and printer, fictitious money, and a high-end radio jammer. Veronika Kushnareva, 32, San Jose, was arrested for possession of property used with the stolen credit card and possession of drug paraphernalia.
Meanwhile, another officer conducted a foot patrol check of the surrounding area for the male suspect and located him lurking in a stairwell of a nearby motel. He was positively identified as being the suspect who used the stolen credit card and was driving the stolen car. Richard Kissinger, 40, Walnut, was then arrested.
Detectives investigating this case have identified victims that include residents from Costa Mesa, Fontana, Irvine, Newport Beach, and Tustin, as well as businesses in the area. Of those, 15 victims were successfully contacted. Detectives are working to identify additional victims of mail theft, credit card fraud and identity theft in this case.
If you suspect you were a victim of these two suspects, please email Detective Sally Ortiz at sortiz@costamesaca.gov.
