Residents warn of credit card fraud

HAMPTON, Va. (WAVY) - Two men say that just days after they used credit cards at the same restaurant in Hampton, their credit card numbers were compromised and used by strangers.

The unknown charge was from a Target in Ohio. At the time, Joe Maddox just thought it was an isolated incident until he spoke with his friend Mike Nyberg.

"You get upset," Joe Maddox said. "Somebody has stolen for you. You're working hard for what you make everyday. It begins to bother you. (Mike) got in the car Friday morning and he said, 'You wouldn't believe this, but I've got a $100 charge on my card in Indiana,'" Maddox said.

Maddox and Nyberg then discovered they used their credit cards just days before at a get-together at the NASCAR Sports Grille located at 1996 Power Plant Parkway in Hampton.

"We were talking to friends of ours that were at that party and we started putting two and two together," Maddox said. "We found out that (there were) three, four and then five and realized that many people have been affected."

WAVY.com spoke with the Cordish Company who owns the NASCAR Sports Grille. Vice President Jack Miller says the company is aware of the problem and it's doing everything it can to protect customers. They increased encryption and added fire walls and say they are not sure how anyone would get credit card numbers.

"I can't begin to question or understand what the problem is," Maddox said. "I just know that there is a problem."

Miller says his business is also a victim in all this. He tells WAVY.com a special security technician is in town and will be going through the entire system to see where the problem originated.