He's a victim, too. Yes, Teller County Sheriff Mike Ensminger says he and three of his deputies used their debit cards in Divide last week and this week suspicious charges showed up.

The Sheriff says, "I wasn't overly surprised because I knew what was going on."

Sheriff Ensminger says they're trying to nail down exactly where the breach occurred, But don't know yet.

For now he's encouraging everyone who lives in the quiet community of Divide or those who've recently traveled through... using their credit or debit card to check recent card activity for anything suspicious.

Maureen Jensen says her credit card company alerted her of a charge in New York City.

Maureen says, "I know it's tough out there, you know but I think people are trying to make easy money and you know I work hard for my earnings just like everybody else."

Sheriff Ensminger tells me he's not sure how the culprits committed the crimes.

They could have used a hand-held skimmer which reads credit card information or attached such a device to a gas station pump or even hacked into point of sale machines by intercepting information swiped into them.

The bottom line... the ony way to protect yourself is not to use a debit or credit card at all.

But since most of us don't want to walk around with cash and love the cards' convenience, check your card activity regularly and report anything suspicious right away.

If you believe you're a victim of this rash of credit card fraud Sheriff Ensminger says call your credit card company first and his office second.
The number to dial is (719) 687-9652.