California man accused of stealing more than $100K in North Carolina card fraud
A California man is in the Brunswick County Detention Center in North Carolina, accused of stealing more than $100,000 from various bank accounts. Gerry Agopian, 31, of Burbank, was arrested last night. According to warrants, Agopian accessed computer systems by placing “capture” devices to get ATM, debit, and credit card numbers, along with security pins. Those numbers were then used to access bank accounts. He’s also accused of using a scanning device to access, read, obtain and store information encoded on financial cards belonging to multiple people.
Agopian is accused of using counterfeit ATM, debit, and credit cards to withdraw money from victim’s accounts. The money stolen exceeded $100,000. Warrants allege Agopian conspired with others to commit these crimes. The crimes happened between December 14, 2016 and December 21, 2016. The warrant for his arrest was issued January 27, 2017. He is charged with accessing government computers fraudulently and obtaining property via false pretense. [For more: WWAY3 News]
UPDATE: Store employee criminally charged for shooting at shoplifting suspect
This is an update to the story that we told you about in Monday’s LP Insider. According to Anchorage Police Department, the shoplifting of cigarettes is not a crime that would warrant store employees to discharge weapons. This, after the clerk working there now faces criminal charges for shooting at the fleeing thief. APD released an update to their previous alert that a man was caught on camera allegedly stealing a carton of cigarettes, now stating that the store employee was being charged with crimes as well.
In the closed circuit security camera footage, viewers can see a still-unidentified man stealing cigarettes. Shortly after, the store employee, now identified as Ebenie Rafael Andujar, 22, allegedly discharged a weapon at the fleeing suspect. That’s a wrong move, according to police who said in an update “the store clerk, Andujar, was charged with Discharging a Firearm and Reckless Endangerment.” They say the man who allegedly stole the cigarettes has not yet been apprehended. [For more: KTUU2 News]
Suspect charged after allegedly shoplifting, fleeing from police, then causing crash
A man who stole more than $650 worth of Air Jordan T-shirts from an Independence Center store is behind bars after leading police on a chase that ended in a wreck and injured two children. Jackson County, Missouri, prosecutors charged Gary Butler, 32, of Kansas City, with three counts of second-degree assault and resisting arrest after he fled from Independence Police late Thursday night. Butler and two others fled the Champs Store at Independence Center Mall with the stolen T-shirts. Officers spotted the suspects’ car and initiated a pursuit . The chase ended a short time later when the suspects’ car crashed into an SUV at 39th Street and 291 Highway.
Three people in the SUV were injured, including two children, who suffered a broken thumb, broken jaw and facial lacerations. The adult in the car suffered a broken pelvis. In an interview with police after the crash, Butler said he was not involved in “theft related activities.” Reporters spoke to one man who said he was sitting at the stoplight when his car was hit hard. James Hart has some harsh words for the men he believes are responsible. “We’ve all done some dumb driving in our life and bad things, but that was just another level of ding dong unsafe driving by an evil person,” he said. “I’m just calling it what it is.” Hart said he’s thankful more damage was not done. [For more: KSHB41 News]
LP Worldwide: Employee stole £150,000 from Halifax jewelers
Thirty-three year-old Graham Frost from Derby was sentenced to 30 months imprisonment on Thursday. Frost, was charged with theft by employee by Detectives from Halifax after suspicions were raised by staff at Lister Horsfall in Halifax. Front had worked at the store since January 2015. Almost immediately he began to smuggle watches and jewelry out of the store, and sold these on. When officers attended his address in Derby in 2015, they found stolen items, and almost £38,000 ($49,050) in cash. Frost was also found to have recently deposited £45,000 ($58060.) in to various bank accounts.
Frost pleaded guilty to stealing items worth £150,000 ($193,620) converting stolen goods in to cash and possessing criminal property. He was sentenced to 30 months imprisonment at Bradford Crown Court on Thursday June 29, and was told by the judge the theft was “blatant, brazen and mean.” Detective Inspector Toby Facey of Calderdale CID said; “Frost abused the trust of the family firm who’s business has been built over generations and stole items out of pure greed. He thought his crimes had gone unnoticed and that he could begin a new life away from West Yorkshire using funds from his thefts. I hope that the sentence handed to Frost demonstrates our commitment to the communities of Calderdale that the law knows no boundaries and we will do all we can to pursue offenders to bring them to justice.” [For more: West Yorkshire Police]
Deputy struck by shoplifting suspect who tried to flee
A 25-year-old Cartersville, Georgia, woman is facing aggravated assault charges after she tried to flee a grocery store parking lot. Deputies suspected Olivia Ann Hayes of shoplifting from the Cartersville Ingles about 1:23 p.m. Tuesday, Bartow County sheriff’s spokesman Jonathan Rogers said in a news release. Hayes, who was already on probation, was getting into a Honda Accord when deputies tried to talk to her and she immediately backed up, striking one deputy in the leg, Rogers said. “She then drove forward, striking two cars to escape, one of which had a toddler inside with a woman loading groceries in the trunk,” Rogers said.
When deputies chased Hayes onto the road, she turned the wrong way onto Felton Road and almost struck a deputy head-on, Rogers said. Officials later discovered Hayes didn’t have a valid Georgia driver’s license. She drove to the Crown Inn on Tennessee Street, where witnesses provided law enforcement officials with her room number. Troopers assisted Bartow deputies in arresting Hayes. Rogers said Hayes might face additional charges from other agencies. Hayes was charged with three counts of aggravated assault on a law enforcement officer, two counts of aggravated assault, hit and run, fleeing and attempting to elude officers, probation violation, shoplifting, driving without a license and making an illegal left turn, Rogers said. The deputy who was struck by the car is expected to be OK. [For more: Atlanta Journal – Constitution]
The post Breaking News in the Industry: July 5, 2017 appeared first on LPM.