Trio scammed Target stores using ‘sleight of hand’ trick to buy gift cards, feds say
Three Romanian citizens accused of defrauding Target stores across the U.S. have been sentenced to prison, authorities said.
The trio used a “sleight of hand” trick to buy Visa gift cards without paying full price, according to an Aug. 7 news release from the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Missouri. Sleight of hand is a “cleverly executed trick or deception” that requires skill and dexterity.
“When purchasing the cards, they would display the full purchase price in cash, then fold over a portion and keep it while handing the rest of the money to store employees,” officials said.
As part of the yearslong “short-change” scheme, authorities said the three people would target “younger or less experienced” store workers. They then wired profits of the scheme to family in Romania, according to the release.
The trio included a man, his wife and his sister-in-law, officials said.
“All three also admitted entering the country illegally after being removed from the United States before,” according to the release.
The defense attorneys representing the defendants did not immediately respond to a request for comment from McClatchy News on Aug. 8
All three pleaded guilty in Missouri earlier this year to conspiracy to commit wire fraud and illegal reentry of an alien, records show. The charges are felonies.
Officials said one of the women was involved in stealing $224,666 since 2017, and the other admitted to being involved in the theft of $83,865. The man wired about $62,534, according to the release.
“Fraud is often mistaken for a victimless crime,” Taekuk Cho, acting special agent in charge of the Homeland Security Investigations. Kansas City Area of Operations, said in the release. “But when individuals commit these types of crimes, whether it be through heightened prices to recoup lost funds, employee layoffs, or a multitude of other possible losses to the economy, these criminals are most certainly victimizing consumers and businesses.”
The 30-year-old man has been sentenced to 15 months in prison, and his wife has been sentenced to two years in prison. Her sister was sentenced to 10 months in prison.
The wife has also been ordered to repay $224,666 in restitution, officials said. A restitution amount for the other two people will not be determined until Nov. 5, records show.
McClatchy News requested comment from Target on Aug. 8 and was awaiting a response.
Homeland Security Investigations and the Arnold Police Department investigated the scheme.
Arnold is part of the St. Louis metropolitan area.
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