Man is arrested after trying to purchase $20,000 of merchandise with alleged counterfeit credit card

Costa Mesa police say a Rowland Heights man used a counterfeit credit card to try to buy $20,000 of merchandise at a high-end jewelry store in South Coast Plaza.

About 6:30 p.m. Wednesday, officers responded to the shopping center’s Bulgari store where 20-year-old Guoquan Wang had allegedly tried to use the fraudulent card.

Police said Wang had successfully used the scheme twice before at the store in 2014.

He allegedly made off with more than $27,000 worth of jewelry and other accessories from those two purchases.

When officers arrested Wang, they found numerous other bogus cards on him, according to police.

Wang was booked on charges of burglary, grand theft, forgery and possession of a counterfeit credit card and is being held in Orange County Jail in lieu of $100,000 bail, according to authorities.

Investigators are looking into whether Wang is connected to other similar crimes, police said.

Authorities asked that anyone with information about the case contact detectives at (714) 754-5637.

— Jeremiah Dobruck

Twitter: @jeremiahdobruck