An Ohio man, John Carleton Johnson, Jr., has pleaded guilty to illegally possessing magnetic stripe credit card encoding devices. The plea was entered on June 30, 2025, following his arrest in Rankin County on April 28, 2024. During a traffic stop, authorities found Johnson in possession of approximately 322 gift cards, seventeen reencoded instruments with stolen bank card data, and two magstripe encoding devices.
Court documents reveal that Johnson and a co-defendant were captured on CCTV footage at various retail stores in the Jackson metropolitan area using cloned instruments to purchase gift cards. Johnson admitted guilt to one count of possession or trafficking of device-making equipment with intent to defraud. His sentencing is set for October 23, 2025, where he could face up to 15 years in federal prison. A federal district court judge will decide the sentence after reviewing the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other factors.
The announcement was made by Acting U.S. Attorney Patrick A. Lemon of the Southern District of Mississippi, U.S. Secret Service Special Agent in Charge Patrick Davis, and Mississippi Attorney General Lynn Fitch.
The investigation is being conducted by the United States Secret Service, Mississippi Attorney General’s Office, and the Mississippi Bureau of Investigation through their Cyber Fraud Task Force partnership. They are receiving assistance from the Mississippi Highway Patrol and the Flowood Police Department.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Kimberly T. Purdie is handling the prosecution.
