LOS ANGELES — Detective David Hill of Montgomery County (Md.) Police Department and Special Agent Philip Soto of the U.S. Secret Service were given the National Retail Federation’s Law Enforcement Retail Partnership Award yesterday at its annual Loss Prevention Conference at the Los Angeles Convention Center.

The award is presented each year to individuals in the law enforcement industry who have gone beyond the call of duty to support the retail industry in its fight against retail fraud, organized retail crime and other major incidents that affect the retail industry.

In May 2008, Hill received a tip from a local retailer about one customer routinely purchasing high-end merchandise with multiple gift cards. By working with Soto, Hill uncovered that the credit cards being used to purchase the gift cards were still in the possession of the original owners, tipping them off that this was a potential skimming case.

The case was a partnership between Montgomery County Police Department, the Secret Service and several retailers, including Target and Wal-Mart.

“Detective Hill’s initiative to start working the case after a hunch from one of his existing retail contacts shows the significance of the partnerships he’s developed in the retail community,” said NRF Vice President of Loss Prevention Rhett Asher. “Special Agent Soto’s perseverance in connecting the dots between the bankers and retailers and later ensuring the suspects were prosecuted shows his dedication to the retail industry.”

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