Wilmington Brothers Face Theft Charges

LOWELL - Two Wilmington brothers are accused of going on a $2,700 spending spree after allegedly breaking into a Rogers Street home last October and stealing the homeowners credit card.

In Lowell District Court, Michael S. Maga, 23, and Scott M. Maga Jr., 27, and both of Wilmington, are each accused of 11 counts of improper use of a credit card and conspiracy. Michael Maga is free on personal recognizance, while Scott Maga is being held on $1,000 cash bail.

Both men are scheduled to return to court on March 9.

Tewksbury police allege that at 2 p.m. on Oct. 26, 2016, a Rogers Street resident reported that his home had been broken into the day before and his Discover credit card was stolen.

More than $2,700 worth of charges began to appear on his credit card began nearly every minute starting at 1:54 p.m. on Oct. 25, 2016 and ending at 10:48 a.m. on Oct. 26, 2016. The charges included gas, Home Depot, $500 at Hannafords and more than $1,500 at Walmart.

Tewksbury police pulled store surveillance video to see if they could identify the suspects, but they wore hooded sweatshirts to try to hide their faces. Police were able to get a license plate number of the car they used to drive way from one of the stores. The car was registered to Scott Maga Sr., who has two sons - Scott Jr. and Michael, police allege.

After viewing photos of the brothers on COPLINK, police were able to compare the photos to the surveillance video. Police found the family living at the Motel 6 in Tewksbury. The parents identified their sons from surveillance photos, police allege.

Police allege that Michael Maga, who has 29 adult arraignments on his record, conducted all the transactions with the stolen credit card and Scott Maga was present at the register during the transactions.

Courtesy photo of Michael Maga