Peoria police have arrested six people accused of running a fraud operation that used stolen credit card information to buy more than $1 million worth of merchandise, with investigators recovering cash, gold bars and goods. The six suspects were booked into jail and are being held on $500,000 cash-only bonds each.
According to FOX 10 Phoenix, police say the group used stolen credit card information from Walmart customer accounts to buy products online, then had the goods delivered to a Peoria home. Officers say they recovered $35,000 in cash, $45,000 in gold bars and roughly $25,000 in merchandise tied to the case.
A Delivery Driver's Tip Cracked the Case
The operation reportedly unraveled after a Walmart delivery driver noticed something odd: multiple packages addressed under different names were all being dropped off at the same Peoria house. That tip, per investigators, helped trigger a two-month investigation that ultimately led to the six arrests.
Police say the group then shipped merchandise to Vietnam inside shipping containers, according to the same report. It's not clear from available information how long the shipments had been going out or how many containers were involved.
How Arizona Law Treats the Alleged Crimes
Under Arizona law, a person can commit organized retail theft either alone or with others by engaging in specific conduct spelled out in Arizona Revised Statutes § 13-1819. Separately, state law classifies theft of a credit card, or obtaining one through fraudulent means, as a class 5 felony under ARS § 13-2102.
Part of a Broader Pattern Nationally
Stolen-card fraud rings tied to bulk merchandise resale have surfaced elsewhere in the country. In Pennsylvania, WFMZ reported that Tilden Township police described a similar operation using cloned or skimmed credit card information to buy merchandise at Lowe's stores, with members repeatedly renting trucks, loading them with large items, and reselling the goods online. In one instance detailed in that case, two men allegedly used a woman's card to buy water heaters and wood flooring even though, as police put it, “the woman never lost her card.” Investigators in that case traced the rented trucks to three separate Pennsylvania counties.
No court dates, attorney information or additional details about the Peoria suspects have been made public as the investigation continues.
