Ex-Philly cop charged in counterfeit credit card operation

A former Philadelphia police officer has been charged in running a counterfeit credit card operation that targeted more than a dozen victims, including a city police captain.

Rahim Henderson, 38, served in the 22d District for seven years until his resignation in 2007.

Henderson was previously charged in October with forgery and multiple counts of identity theft, according to city court records. When Henderson was arrested, investigators found an encoding machine, a credit card embosser, a credit card printer, and nearly 500 blank credit cards in his home.

According to a federal indictment unsealed Wednesday, Henderson allegedly bought stolen credit card information over the Internet in order to manufacture fake cards at his Mount Airy home. Henderson used the stolen information to "re-encode" the magnetic strips on blank plastic credit cards. Henderson then embossed the fake Visa and MasterCards with his name and the names of two co-conspirators. The trio used the newly minted cards to buy  -- or attempt to buy --  bottles of liquor at Pa. wine and spirits shops.

Henderson, the indictment states, also owned and operated the Atmosphere Bar and Lounge on West Indiana Avenue in the city's Fairhill section.

In its indictment, the grand jury charged Henderson, 38, with multiple counts of aggravated identity theft. In addition, along with his girlfriend Tian LaRode, 34, and Waliyda Henderson, 33, Rahim Henderson was charged with conspiracy and wire fraud.