Monterey Park Police Investigators identified and arrested a woman suspected of multiple incidents of credit card fraud, burglary, and grand theft.  Si H. Liu, also known as “Katie,” was arrested Friday, July 12, at her home in La Puente.  Liu represents herself as a real estate agent and may own a massage business in the city of Fullerton.  Liu speaks Mandarin Chinese and has been a U.S. resident for about 10 years.  Investigators have linked her to at least sixteen victims in the San Gabriel Valley and the investigation continues to grow.

Victims contacted Liu after reading her advertisements for easy loans in the Chinese Daily News. Liu asked victims for their identification, social security numbers, and all of their credit cards so that she could “check their credit” in order to obtain loans. Victims provided the information believing that Liu would obtain loans for them.  Instead, Liu allegedly used the credit cards to obtain cash for herself using a credit card machine that she owned.  Other victims reported that she accompanied them to open credit accounts at retail stores such as Best Buy; she would ask victims to purchase items for her on their credit accounts with a promise to pay them back in cash, but she never did.  Liu also made photocopies of identification and credit cards prior to returning them to the victims, possibly for the purpose of committing fraud and identity theft in the future.

The Monterey Park Police Department urges citizens to be aware of correct financial loan practices and to investigate the legitimacy of any business person promising “easy loans” or requesting personal information such as credit card or bank account information.  Fraud suspects frequently use classified ads to target potential victims, and citizens who have limited English skills are at risk; they are also reluctant to report fraud after it happens.

The Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office filed a 25-count felony complaint against Liu on Tuesday; charges range from Residential and Commercial Burglary to Theft Using an Access card, Possession of Access Card Information, and Grand Theft.

Additional victims are encouraged to contact Detective Han at the Monterey Park Detective Bureau; 626-307-1246.

“Katie” Si H. Liu