A fraud ring involving 15 individuals in Walmart stores in Ramsey and Dakota counties cost the retailer and a cellphone company $300,000, according to criminal charges filed this week.
The scheme involved eight people who used “credit mules” to purchase cellphones and contracts and seven store vendor employees who benefited from bonuses by selling the phones to fraudulent buyers, authorities said.
“This case is an example of our investigators’ commitment helping people who have been victimized,” said Natalie Davis, spokeswoman for the St. Paul Police Department. “Fraud investigations are incredibly complex, time consuming and important. Anything we can do to help people who’ve fallen prey to scammers and prevent future victims is a success.”