Dutch man charged with stealing Washington credit cards

Federal prosecutors say a 21-year-old Dutch national coordinated the theft of about 44,000 credit card numbers worldwide, including some from the Boeing Employees Credit Union, by hacking into the sales system of businesses.

Following extradition from Romania, David Benjamin Schrooten appeared in a Seattle federal court on Monday and pleaded not guilty.

U.S. Attorney Jenny A. Durkan says the investigation began because a restaurant owner alerted Seattle police that customers at his establishment had seen suspicious charges.

Charging documents say the suspicious transactions were eventually linked to Schrooten's ring. The documents say Schrooten ran websites selling stolen credit cards numbers in bulk.

Durkan says the 44,000 credit cards included in the indictment were part of just one transaction.

Another man, 21-year-old Christopher A. Schroebel of Maryland, also has been charged.