Store Employees Piece Together Man’s LEGO Theft Scheme

by Guest Contributor April 23, 2021

by Guest Contributor April 23, 2021 27 views

By Isaac Ray

After store employees caught wind of his elaborate scheme to return stolen LEGO sets, a Fort Lauderdale man was arrested for grand theft.

On April 18, Coral Springs Police responded to a call from Walmart at 3801 Turtle Creek Drive. When officers arrived, they encountered a man, later identified as Jonray Archibald, 26, who store employees had detained for suspected theft.

According to the report, Walmart employees noticed Archibald acting suspiciously, so they kept a close eye on him as he browsed the store. After some time, he picked out various LEGO sets, put them in his shopping cart, and eventually paid for the items and left the store without incident.

However, just minutes later, employees observed him re-enter the store, where he placed the same sets in his cart. But this time, he bypassed all points of sale and attempted to exit without paying.

The report says an employee stopped him at the exit, asking for his receipt, to which Archibald presented the previous receipt from his valid purchase. Not knowing of his previous purchase, the employee allowed Archibald to exit with the stolen merchandise.

Archibald once again re-entered the store, but this time, with multiple LEGO sets in hand. He then walked to the customer service area, where he attempted to return the items. By this time, associates had figured out what happened prior, refused the return, and detained Archibald until police arrived.

During an interview with officers, Archibald said he knew what he was doing was wrong and that he planned to return the items he paid for and resell the items he had stolen. In all, the LEGO sets he did not pay for were valued at $849.65.