Source: CFOTO / Getty / Lululemon
One Connecticut couple f***ed around and eventually found out after allegedly going on a Lululemon boosting spree across the country.
NBC News reports that Jadion Richards, 44, and Akwele Lawes-Richards, 45, were pinched at a Lululemon store in Woodbury, Minnesota, and charged with organized retail theft on November 4.
According to the news website, the couple boosted around $1 million in Lululemon merchandise nationwide. Before their arrest, the complaint notes that the couple visited another Lululemon location in Roseville, Minnesota, with an unidentified man, where they allegedly stole $5,000 worth of product.
The couple allegedly had an elaborate theft scheme they used when visiting the locations that ensured they could make off with the goods.
Per NBC News:
An investigator for Lululemon said the couple and the organized crime group they work for had been stealing from stores across the country since September and are responsible for nearly $1 million worth of financial loss for the company, per the complaint.
The investigator explained how the couple allegedly run their theft scheme, with Richards typically entering the store first and purchasing a couple of small items. Richards and Lawes-Richards would then remove a security sensor from another item in the store that they’d attach to the small items Richards purchased, then steal other items that they’d conceal under their clothes and jackets.
Lawes-Richards and a third person would walk out of the store ahead of Richards with the stolen items, and when the security sensor at the store would beep, Richards would offer his bag that contained the small purchased item with a sensor attached to it to staff, according to the complaint. The couple would then take the stolen items to another store to exchange them without a receipt.
Well damn.
Lululemon’s Statement on The Couple’s Arrest
In a statement, Lululemon’s vice president of asset protection, Tristen Shields, spoke on the couple’s arrest, saying that the company is committed to “creating a safe and secure environment” for shoppers and staff.
Shields continued, “This outcome continues to underscore our ongoing collaboration with law enforcement and our investments in advanced technology, team training, and investigative capabilities to combat retail crime and hold offenders accountable. We remain dedicated to continuing these efforts to address and prevent this industry-wide issue.”
After the couple’s arrest, authorities obtained a search warrant. They found large suitcases containing an estimated $50,000 worth of Lululemon products in a rented room at the J.W. Marriott in Bloomington, Minnesota.
Online records indicate the couple was booked into the Ramsey County Jail on November 14. NBC News reports that Lawes-Richards got out on $30,000 bail on Tuesday, November 19, and Richards was released Thursday, November 21, on $100,000 bail.
