A BJ’s Wholesale Club employee in Parkland is accused of turning the warehouse store’s shipping room into a personal side hustle, after Broward Sheriff’s Office deputies say he used the in-house system to ship stolen merchandise to buyers around the country. Deputies say an anonymous tip kicked off the investigation, and a review of surveillance footage pointed them to a suspect.
Investigators identified the employee as 52-year-old John Stevens of Boca Raton and say the thefts took place between March and June at the club at 5901 W. Hillsboro Blvd. Deputies allege Stevens used the store’s system to ship stolen property on 27 separate occasions, costing BJ’s roughly $10,000. He now faces charges that include grand theft and organized dealing in stolen property. As reported by WPLG Local 10, Stevens was taken into custody and was being held at the Broward County Main Jail on a $25,000 bond.
Alleged Scheme Fits Broward Retail Theft Pattern
Law enforcement in Broward has repeatedly gone after resale-driven theft networks in recent years, where stolen goods are pushed to pawn shops or quietly listed online. A multi-year probe that ended with several arrests and pallets of recovered merchandise showed how so-called boosters and fences can turn everyday shoplifting into a steady business model. That earlier investigation was detailed by Broward.us.
How Detectives Say The Goods Went Out The Door
According to deputies, surveillance video shows Stevens pulling items from the sales floor, taking them into a shipping room, and using the club’s UPS shipping computer to send boxes to buyers across the United States, including shipments to his own address. Investigators also say he advertised products on eBay and Facebook and then mailed them out after the sales, according to arrest documents outlined by Local 10.
Felony Counts And What They Mean
Stevens is charged with grand theft of more than $10,000 but less than $20,000, 25 counts of dealing in stolen property, and one count of organized dealing, according to deputies. Under Florida law, theft of property valued between $10,000 and $20,000 is grand theft of the third degree, and dealing in stolen property is at least a second-degree felony. Organizing or directing trafficking in stolen property can be charged as a first-degree felony. See section 812.014 and section 812.019 in Florida Statutes and Florida Statutes, and sentencing ranges in Justia.
The Broward Sheriff’s Office says the investigation is still active and the case will now work its way through the county court system.
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