They were caught on camera more than two months ago. But two suspected coupon fraudsters remain at large – so police are asking for the public’s help in finding them before they strike again.
Police in Chesterfield, Virginia say the two men pictured above visited a Walmart in nearby Petersburg back on June 12th. Together, they purchased ten cases of Red Bull valued at $22 each, totaling $220. But police say they used counterfeit coupons to get $20 off each case, paying a total of just $20 out of pocket for their haul.
Then they visited the Walmart in Chesterfield, where the photo above shows them at customer service returning the cases of Red Bull they had just purchased. The store returned the full price of the items, which means the suspects allegedly made a tidy profit of $200.
And this was far from a one-off, police believe. “Further investigation has revealed that these suspects have perpetuated this fraud at numerous Central Virginia stores resulting in a total loss of about $12,000,” investigators explained.
Police haven’t said what specific coupons the suspects used – whether they were paper or digital, for instance – or how they managed to get $20 off each $22 item without raising suspicions at the checkout. But whatever they were doing seemed to have worked, if it earned them $12,000 – which apparently didn’t raise any suspicions at the return counter, either.
The scheme relies on a loophole that’s long divided retailers – whether to refund the full price of an item purchased with coupons, or to refund the price minus the value of any coupons used. Many couponers have long argued that coupons are essentially a form of payment, so if they can’t get the actual coupon back to use on a future purchase, getting the full value of the product back is the next best thing. From the retailers’ perspective, customers should only get back the money they actually spent, since coupons aren’t meant to be redeemed for cash.
Target, for one, revised its return policy a couple of years ago, in an apparent effort to crack down on the very form of return fraud that these Walmart suspects are accused of. “When you return any item, your return credit will not include any promotional discount or coupon that applied to the original order,” reads Target’s updated policy.
Walmart, in contrast, has no similar stipulations in its return policy. “Returns of items purchased using Manufacturer Coupons will include the coupon value returned to the customer,” Walmart’s policy reads. It goes on to say that “Walmart reserves the right to decline the return of items purchased with manufacturer coupons” – but the Walmart locations that the two Virginia suspects visited apparently declined to exercise that right.
Police haven’t said whether the suspects being sought in Chesterfield have engaged in any more suspicious transactions since their photos were first circulated earlier this summer, or if they’ve been laying low. They have managed to evade detection, though, which prompted the Chesterfield County/Colonial Heights Crime Solvers program to renew their request for help this week.
They’re asking anyone who might be able to identify the suspects to call Crime Solvers at 804-748-0660, or visit their website at crimesolvers.net for additional ways to get in touch. Tipsters will remain anonymous and could receive a cash reward of up to $5,000.
That could buy a lot of Red Bull. No coupons required.
Image source: Chesterfield County Police Department
