FOUNTAIN VALLEY : Man Held in Phone Number ‘Cloning’

A 21-year-old man described as a “computer whiz” by police has been arrested for allegedly “cloning” cellular telephone numbers, authorities said Wednesday.

Nathan A. Koval of Fountain Valley had allegedly devised a sophisticated and illegal method of obtaining free cellular telephone time with his computer, said police Sgt. Dann Bean.

“In his files, we found more than 50 telephone numbers that he’s tried to clone,” Bean said. “But it will take investigators weeks to determine the extent of the calls and the total cost.”

Police estimate that Koval “cloned” at least $20,000 worth of calls, Bean said.

Investigators from the Fountain Valley Police Department, U.S. Secret Service and the Orange County Auto Theft Task Force began investigating Koval last month after receiving a tip.

Representatives from PacTel Cellular in Irvine met with police Wednesday to study Koval’s paperwork. They looked up several accounts listed among Koval’s records, Bean said, and determined that customers had reported numbers improperly charged to these accounts.

Police allege that Koval conducted the “cloning” from the home he shares with his parents.

Koval is also suspected of conducting a telemarketing scheme. Police said he may have used his computer to obtain names and phone numbers of potential victims and allegedly would “call them and tell them they won $50,000.”

“Then he would say that they would have to send him a money order for several hundreds of dollars in order for them to claim their prize,” Bean said.

Koval is being held on $10,000 bail at Huntington Beach Jail on suspicion of possessing stolen property, telephone and mail fraud, and “cloning” cellular telephone numbers.