Man accused of using fake credit cards receives federal sentence
A man arrested in 2017 outside of the Moline, Illinois, Von Maur department store on suspicion he was using fake credit cards has been sentenced to federal prison. Raiko M. Lopez was sentenced to 30 months on a charge of possessing at least 15 fraudulent credit cards, according to court records filed in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of Illinois. Lopez was arrested by the Moline Police Department on July 21, according to federal court records. He allegedly had just attempted to purchase a purse, but the card was declined. He tried to leave, but police officers approached him outside the store. They had been notified by the store’s loss prevention associate who told them Lopez had been in the store on June 7 and 8. On those days, Lopez, identifying himself as Eric Baez, also allegedly made purchases using fraudulent cards. The store did not discover the purchases were fraudulent until later, when it was notified that the cards were unauthorized. When police spoke with Lopez, he at first denied using a credit card, but the loss prevention associate accused him of just using the card and said Lopez still possessed it, the records state. Lopez allegedly insisted he had not used a card and tried to leave. Lopez declined to give his name, but officers found on his person in a wallet what the court records state was a fake Illinois driver’s license under the name David King. There were also two credit cards under that name in the wallet that were determined to be counterfeit.
With his consent, according to court records, officers searched Lopez’s rental vehicle and allegedly found more than 60 credit cards in the vehicle with the name David King on them. At least 25 were verified to be counterfeits. Court records state officers searching the vehicle also recovered other items, including two PlayStation 4 gaming consoles; two new laptops; a Louis Vuitton handbag; Lopez’s real wallet, containing his Florida driver’s license and other possessions; and a $750 watch. Lopez pleaded guilty in November, according to federal court records. There was no information on the record on whether there was a plea deal. Lopez did not go to trial. Besides the prison sentence, he must also pay $15,473 in restitution and serve three years of supervised release once he has served his prison term, federal records state. Lopez, 28, of Miami Beach, Fla., was originally charged in Rock Island County with using an altered or counterfeit credit card and possessing a fake driver’s license, according to county court records. Those charges were dropped in August because of the federal case. [Source: Dispatch-Argus]
C-Store employee stole more than $14,000
An employee at the Centre Hall Snappy’s Convenience Store in State College, Pennsylvania, is facing charges after allegedly stealing more than $14,000 in money deposits she was responsible for making on behalf of the store. Snappy’s accounting department reported to the district store manager that several daily deposits had not been made. The district manager then contacted Tracy L. Addleman, 40, who was responsible for making the daily deposits, and Addleman couldn’t explain why they had not been made. The district manager told state police that she retrieved the daily deposit prepared by Addleman, but found it was $258 short. When confronted by the district manager and a human resources staff member about the missing deposits, Addleman only said that she was keeping them in her car but that the money wasn’t currently there, according to a criminal complaint. After being told she had one last chance to get the money, Addleman allegedly went to her car and returned with four Ziploc bags containing about $1,800 in cash. Three of the bags had deposit slips stating greater amounts than were inside the bags. The district manager told police that in total Addleman was responsible for the loss of $14,101.22 over more than a week. Addleman was charged with felony counts of theft by unlawful taking, theft by deception and receiving stolen property. She was arraigned on Monday before District Judge Thomas Jordan and released on $20,000 unsecured bail. [Source: StateCollege.com]
Man accused of stealing jewelry from store
A 58-year-old man accused of stealing $25,000 worth of merchandise from a store in the Central Business District Friday (April 6) is the same man who was caught on camera stealing jewelry from a boutique in February, according to court records. New Orleans police released photos Saturday of a man wanted for taking two Rolex watches and a large Louis Vuitton tote bag from a store in the 100 block of Roosevelt Way Friday afternoon. The bag was also stuffed with clothing, police said, and the stolen items were worth about $25,000. William Arledge was arrested Monday, according to NOPD, in connection to the CBD theft and booked into Orleans Justice Center jail on one count of theft over $1,500. According to court records, Arledge was indicted on April 3 on four counts of theft and one of resisting arrest in connection to the Magazine Street thefts. His bond was set for $5,500, but court records show he was released on his own recognizance. Court records show Arledge appeared in court Monday afternoon, where Orleans Parish Magistrate commissioner Albert Thibodeaux set his bond for $200 and assigned a public defender to his case. [Source: The Times – Picayune]
Nordstrom bucks a retail trend by opening a New York City store
The Nordstrom family has run stores for more than a century but never made a big bet in the nation’s retailing capital until now. On Thursday, Nordstrom will open its first full-line store in Manhattan, a sleek, three-floor home to men’s clothing, shoes and grooming supplies at 57th Street and Broadway. The Seattle company arrives in New York at an inauspicious time for retailers. Its competitors are selling off or converting some of their grandest stores, not building new ones. The city’s toniest shopping strips, in SoHo and on Madison Avenue, have been littered with empty store fronts. But the Nordstroms — one of the last remaining dynasties of U.S. retailing — think they can buck the trend, even as many investors on Wall Street have grown wary of brick-and-mortar retailing. Last week, with seven days before the doors were to open, the new store buzzed with contractors installing wiring and sales staff getting trained on shoe styles and online pickup. The racks were hung with a mix of runway fashion pieces, and the shelves were filled with stacks of Levi’s jeans. Large windows flooded the aisles with natural light.
By a front entrance, there was a Comme des Garçons jacket festooned with a furry ladybug pattern priced at a cool $5,023. And there was a pair of sparkling blue and red Gucci loafers with an $830 price tag. But there were also Samuelsohn suits starting at about $1,000, Vans sneakers for about $50 and Adidas slides for $20. Nordstrom created a mock-up of the new men’s store in an industrial area outside Seattle, accessible only to employees, as it tried to figure out how best to appeal to both New York’s fashion mavens and more down-to-earth shoppers on lunch break. “We know a market like New York doesn’t need just another place to buy a pair of pants,” said Peter Nordstrom, a company co-president and a great-grandson of the co-founder John W. Nordstrom. The store may serve as a test case for whether department stores have a future, as people more frequently shop online. To compete, Nordstrom is aiming to combine cutting-edge technology with old-school in-store service. Rag-snapping shoe shiners will work on the bottom floor, while digital screens in the suit section will display custom-made jackets on an avatar of the shopper. There will be 16 tailors on staff — part of the largest network of tailors in North America. If a customer needs a tie at 2 in the morning, he can order it online and a Nordstrom employee will meet him at a store entrance — no matter the hour. Returns can be made by simply scanning an item at a digital kiosk and depositing it in a bin — no human interaction needed. [Source: The Seattle Times]
Bystanders help subdue shoplifting suspect
Bystanders helped a Wichita, Kansas, police officer get a shoplifting suspect into custody. The officer tried to arrest the suspect Sunday afternoon, at the 47th and Broadway Dillon’s. Police say the suspect started fighting with the officer, and tried to take their gun at one point. Bystanders, including store employees, helped the officer get the suspect under control. The 23-year-old man was booked for shoplifting and battery of a law enforcement officer. There minor injuries to the officer’s hand after the struggle. The Wichita Police Department is thanking the people who stepped in to help out. [Source: KFDI News]
Employee accused of giving freebies to her boyfriend
A Virginia Walmart cashier is accused of allowing her boyfriend to take groceries from the store without paying, police said. The pair now face felony charges. According to Stafford Sheriff’s spokeswoman Amanda Vicinanzo, police began an investigation last month after a loss prevention associate at the store at 11 Village Parkway discovered the thefts. After becoming suspicious and reviewing receipts and security video footage, it was determined that the cashier on three different occasions had allowed the same man to leave with a cart full of groceries while only paying for a few items. The total amount stolen was $683.67, Vicinanzo said. Jennifer Renee Satterwhite, 38, of King George is charged with three counts of embezzlement and two counts of conspiracy. Her boyfriend, 36-year-old Dougie Ray Gillis of King George, is charged with two counts of grand larceny, misdemeanor larceny and two counts of conspiracy. [Source: Fredricksburg.com]