Palm Beach Police say they caught a trio from New York trying to steal thousands of dollars worth of merchandise from high-end stores on the island.
Officers arrested Yuting Iwu, Zijun Guo and Chengliang Yang with fraudulent credit cards after employees stopped their purchases at Louis Vuitton and Saks Fifth Avenue stores on Worth Ave on May 21, an arrest report states.
Iwu told officers she picked up a package with fraudulent credit cards under a Mahjong table in a pool hall in Flushing, New York. Then, the trio drove from New York to Palm Beach County to buy items using the credit cards as part of a deal to get paid in exchange for the purchases.
Iwu tried making nearly $10,000 worth of purchases from the Gucci section at Saks Fifth Ave but an employee stopped her, an officer wrote in a report. Yang then tried using a fake Saks Fifth Avenue credit card to make a purchase at Louis Vuitton but was also caught, an employee told police.
Officers reportedly caught up with them on Worth Ave when they found Guo in his Jeep parked nearby. Guo he told them was a Lyft driver and arranged to drive the group to Florida, the report states.
Detectives found a cigarette box in the vehicle with fraudulent credit cards.
They were booked into the Palm Beach County Jail and are facing fraud charges.
