YORK COUNTY, Va. — A multi-state retail theft ring with connections from York County all the way down to Florida has resulted in four people being arrested for stealing $700,000 worth of TVs.
Investigator Layne Forrest told News 3 two people would go into a store - typically a Walmart - buy a large TV and put it in a box truck.
They would then drive around the corner, take out the new TV, replace it with a broken TV, repackage it, then return it to the store.
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“It was basically placed right back on the shelf, where an unsuspecting consumer would come and purchase the device, get it home, install it and find it was completely broken,” said Forrest.
The new TV was then sold on social media sites. According to Sheriff Ron Montgomery, this has happened 129 times just in Virginia, at 34 locations, for a total of 187 TVs. However, the group has been linked to stores being hit all up and down the East Coast.
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“When they absorb losses like this in the hundreds of thousands of dollars and approaching three quarters of a million dollars, eventually those losses will be passed down to the consumer,” said the sheriff.
One woman and three men have been arrested so far. Authorities are looking for three other men.
One of the charges they're facing is a statute that went into effect last year - it's now a felony for a group to work together to steal more than $5,000 worth of goods in 90 days with the intent to sell it.
The sheriff said they could face 20 years for that charge alone, and they're facing several other charges.
