Clarence, NY – Three Wal-Mart employees and an additional accomplice have been arrested as part of a shoplifting ring. Authorities were contacted by loss prevention officials in a Wal-Mart Supercenter, with evidence that demonstrated illegal activity by several employees’ under-charging goods. The suspects would go through the checkout lines of corrupt employees involved in the shoplifting scam, and leave with merchandise they’d not paid for. Wal-Mart estimates that this group is responsible for the loss and theft of more than $7,000 in merchandise .
WGRZ.com details 26-year-old Evelyn Smith, a cashier at Wal-Mart, was charged with Grand Larceny in the Fourth Degree, an E Felony . A class E felony in New York is punishable by up to 4 years in prison. Smith had allegedly under or improperly scanned items on seven occasions. She’d also posed as a customer as part of the scam, going through the lines of others involved, and leaving with merchandise. 21-year-old Tacara Lawrence was slapped with the same charges as Smith, for committing the same aforementioned fraud on at least four occasions.
Twenty-two year old Dewayne Harrell and 19-year-old Latasha Morrow were both charged with Petit Larceny. Petit larceny is a class A misdemeanor.
State Police said the employees would also activate a gift card, keep the active one, and swap it with an inactive identical one, giving the non-funded one to the unsuspecting customer.
This is not the first case of a Wal-Mart employee being caught for attempting to defraud the retailer. Seattlepi.com recently reported that two employees in Marrero, Louisiana were arrested for allegedly trying to take Apple iPads. Manager Kenneth Rancifer, 33, and Robert Brown, 51, were arrested and booked with theft of property worth more than $1,500.
