2 California men arrested in Target gift card fraud ring, caught with 1,000 cards in Fairfax County: police

FAIRFAX COUNTY, Va. - The Franconia Police District have arrested two California men involved in a complex fraud ring involving altered Target gift cards.

Officers were alerted by Target’s Asset Protection on Wednesday, December 20, to two men who were altering gift cards in their store and had done the same thing earlier in the day at a Target store in Manassas. Officers saw the two men stocking the shelves with gift cards and detained them. 

1,0000 Target gift cards recovered in fraud ring

The suspects were found in possession of altered Target gift cards. Officials believe the cards are linked to an outside account which takes money from a would-be buyer and deposits it into the fraudster’s gift card account instead of the buyer’s. 

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A search of the suspect’s vehicle uncovered numerous altered Target gift cards and evidence of a larger fraud ring in the region and extending into states across the country. In total, officers recovered just under 1,000 altered gift cards.

2 Californian men arrested in Target gift card fraud ring, caught with 1,000 cards in Fairfax County

The first suspect has been identified as 32-year-old Rongjie He of California. He was charged with ten felony counts of obtain money by false pretense, credit card theft, and two counts of conspiracy to commit larceny. He was taken to the Fairfax County ADC and has since been released on bond.

The second suspect has been identified as 27-year-old of California. He was charged with four felony counts of obtain money by false pretense, nine counts of credit card theft, and two counts of conspiracy to commit larceny. He was taken to the Fairfax County ADC and is currently being held on no bond.