Florida Crime Ring Targeted Gap, Old Navy, Banana Republic: Cops

LAKELAND, FL — A suspected retail crime ring operating since January has struck 67 Gap, Old Navy, Athleta and Banana Republic stores in 15 Florida counties, according to the Polk County Sheriff's Office. The stores suffered losses totaling $87,500.

The agency said Thursday it was filing charges against seven Florida residents, including four people in Polk County and three in Miami-Dade.

"All of them have been working together since January 2019 committing racketeering, money laundering and fraud at Gap, Inc. stores in 15 different Florida counties, using stolen credit cards from Chase Bank customers,"explained Carrie Horstman of the Polk County Sheriff's Office.

The investigation began in March 2019 when Gap, Inc. turned over video surveillance and electronic journals from various stores where fraudulent transactions allegedly took place.

"The suspects were buying merchandise at the stores with stolen and/or fraudulent Chase Bank credit cards, then returning the merchandise to different Gap, Inc. stores and receiving refunds on their own personal credit cards," Horstman said.

She said the defendants will be prosecuted on various charges through the office of Florida Attorney General Ashley Moody.

"Since the beginning of the year, these felons worked together to steal victims’ credit card information and used those credit cards to steal from retail stores. The four suspects in Polk are also receiving government assistance," said Polk County Sheriff Grady Judd. "Racketeering and money laundering are very serious felonies. We will hold these criminals accountable.”

The Polk County Sheriff's Office released video surveillance of some of the alleged fraudulent transactions. The video below allegedly shows Otis "Bee" Williams and Devonna Moore returning items at one store:

Moody said businesses pass along losses from retail crime to customers. "Criminals must know that fraud of any kind will not to be tolerated in our state, and I will continue to work with Florida’s great law enforcement agencies to investigate and prosecute criminals," Moody explained.

The losses include:

• $63,430 loss for Gap, Inc., of which $4,108 occurred at the Lakeland Old Navy store
• $24,070 loss to Chase Bank

The Florida counties where crimes occurred include Polk, Alachua, Broward, Duval, Hillsborough, Leon, Manatee, Martin, Miami-Dade, Orange, Osceola, Palm Beach, Pasco, Sarasota, and Seminole, according to the sheriff's office.

The ring was allegedly responsible for a total of 568 fraudulent transactions, 15 of which occurred at one Old Navy store in Lakeland, Polk County. The investigation was conducted by the Polk County Sheriff's Office Identity Theft Strike Force Unit.

Some 151 Chase Bank customers, who live in 15 states, were also victims of the alleged offenses, the sheriff's office said. The Chase victims were from Arizona, California, Colorado, Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Missouri, Nevada, New York, Ohio, Oklahoma, Texas, Utah, Washington and Wisconsin.

Facing charges from Polk County were 29-year-old Hakeem Leonard Abraham of Winter Haven; 29-year-old Britney Peacock of Winter Haven; 22-year-old Otis Bernard “Bee” Williams IV of Lake Wales and 22-year-old Devonna Moore of Lake Wales.

Peacock was identified as Abraham's girlfriend and Moore was identified as Williams' girlfriend. Police said Williams is the owner of Designer Kuts Barber Shop in Lake Wales.

"When detectives arrived at Abraham’s house to serve his arrest warrant, Peacock was there and was recognized as the suspect seen on video surveillance committing crimes with him," said Horstman.

The three people facing charges from Miami-Dade were identified as 31-year-old J.D. Jones, Jr.; 29-year-old Calvin Andre Pinckney, Jr. and 26-year-old Sha’quella Jewel Sykes. Warrants had been issued for their arrest as of Thursday.