Quick Thinking, Real-Time Transaction Product, Helps Catch Thief

ATHENS, Ohio – Quick thinking on the part of Ami Thompson, a teller at the $171 million Ohio University Credit Union, combined with a program which allowed her to view debit card transactions in real-time, led to the capture of man who had stolen a member’s debit card. The event took place on Oct. 15, a Saturday, when a university employee member of the credit union came to one of the credit union’s branches to report her debit card had been stolen and that she needed to close her account. In the course of that operation the processing software, a module of Harland Financial Solution’s ULTRADATA System, allowed the teller to see that a debit transaction had just been processed. After checking with the member to make sure that the transaction was not hers, Thompson called the retailer to try to get a description of the card user. When the clerk told Thompson that the card user was still in the store, the member called the police on her cell phone and moments later the thief was apprehended. “I just think it was terrific that we were able to help the member catch the thief,” Thompson said. “It really let us see how important good member service can be.” The product that allowed Thompson to see the transaction is the card services module of ULTRADATA that roughly 400 credit unions use, according to Sharon Rush, a senior product manager with Harland. Rush reported that she was not aware of similar incidents in the past but said she was not surprised that the product would be able to help Thompson react so quickly. “That makes perfect sense because that is what the module is designed to do, to let a teller see a member’s transactions in real-time and to be able to help them address problems right then,” said Rush. Thompson downplayed her role in the apprehension, noting that a lot of coincidence had also been necessary for the 10 to 15 minute adventure to take place; the transaction had to pop up on the screen, the retailer had to be easy to find, the card thief had to be in the store and there had to be police close enough to be able to move in quickly. “I am just delighted to have been able to help,” she said. -