A PAIR of smooth-talking criminals are accused of deceiving a Target employee and swindling over $6,000.
Police in Fort Myers, Florida, are on the hunt for two people believed to be responsible for stealing thousands of dollars worth of gift cards from Target locations in the southwest region.
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On Tuesday, the two men entered a Target in Lee County, approached a cashier, and introduced themselves as corporate employees.
The crooks did not present an employee badge or credentials but somehow convinced the worker.
The phony corporate workers told the cashier to ring up 12 gift cards, each with a $500 balance, as well as apparel and toys in cash, according to CBS affiliate WINK-TV.
Law enforcement officials said the men walked out of the store with over $6,100 in gift cards and other merch.
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Those gift cards are untraceable
Fort Myers’ Crimestoppers said.
A Crimestoppers representative stressed the gift cards the crooks got away with are “untraceable.”
“Criminals know how to get around the system, and when they got literally thousands of dollars worth of gift cards, those gift cards are untraceable, so it’s almost as if you hand over cash,” Trish Routte told the outlet.
Routte said police officials quickly uncovered that the same two men tried to pull off a similar scheme at two different Target locations in southwest Florida.
“There’s a lot of questions out there that I think everyone is asking the same questions, and law enforcement is asking those questions as well,” she added.
“At the end of the day, the most important thing right now is finding out who these two guys are and hopefully stop them in their tracks before they hit another store.”
Meanwhile, on the West Coast, police in Los Angeles arrested two women suspected of stealing $2,000 worth of products from a Target in Orange County.
Target’s loss prevention team tracked down the shoplifters, who Mission Viejo police said were responsible for a string of robberies.
Law enforcement officials said the women had swiped from at least three Targets.
Police shared pictures of the stolen goods recovered from the suspect’s vehicle, showing boxes of infant formula, tinned fish, medicine, and other products.
One of the women was actively on Post-Release Community Supervision for previous theft charges, Mission Viejo police said.
The other suspect had five active warrants for charges related to drugs, theft, and resisting a peace officer, the department added.
The women were arrested and charged with a swell of shoplifting charges.
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