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Woman in fake credit cards case gets 15-month sentence
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Posted on Oct 06 2011
By Ferdie de la Torre
Reporter
Reporter
The federal court has slapped a 15-month prison sentence against a woman who was arrested on Saipan on charges of visiting Guam for the sole purpose of using fake credit cards there to buy luxury items.
U.S. District Court for the NMI Chief Judge Ramona V. Manglona ordered Wing Yee Tse to spend a total of 15 months in prison for two counts of access device fraud and two counts of misuse of immigration document.
Tse was given credit for the 151 days she was in federal custody. Manglona ruled, though, that the time Tse served in her separate Superior Court case would not be counted as time served for the federal case.
Tse was directed to pay $19,466 in restitution in full and immediately after sentencing. If restitution is not immediately paid, Tse shall participate in the Inmate Financial Responsibility Program administered by the Bureau of Prison, Manglona said.
Tse was also required to pay a $400 special assessment fee.
After serving her sentence, Tse will be placed on one year of supervised release. Among the conditions of her release is that she will be turned over to an immigration official for deportation proceedings and will be required to perform 100 hours of community service.
Tse had pleaded guilty to the charges as part of a plea deal.
Tse, a Chinese national, traveled to Guam beginning Sept. 26, 2010, and used counterfeit and stolen credit cards to buy items at high-end shops such as Louis Vuitton, Chanel, Cartier, Rolex, Lin’s Jewelry, and elsewhere.
Tse used, among others, a Diner’s Club credit card issued to W. Y. Tse and an American Express credit card issued to Wing Yen Tse, for these purchases.
The total value of purchased items was estimated at $20,000. She also tried to purchase Gucci items valued at about $6,000.
Tse entered Guam as a tourist under the Guam Visa Waiver Program. She stated she has not been arrested nor convicted of any crime, despite knowing that she had been previously convicted in Hong Kong for possession of dangerous drugs.
Police first arrested Tse on Saipan in November 2010 after a Louis Vuitton staff in Garapan discovered a misuse of credit cards involving the defendant.
