Crooks Stole DVD By Mailing Them From The Store

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I'm not sure if this is a stupid criminal of the day story or if these guys are brilliant. I'll let you decide.

Thieves at a Walmart-owned ASDA supermarket in Cheshire, England managed to evade security after they began packing movies and other stolen goods into envelopes. Instead of walking out with the goods, where they'd be instantly apprehended, they came up with the clever idea to send the packages to themselves using the in-store Post Office.
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That's actually kind of smart, except the part where they did it often enough to get caught. If they didn't do it so often, they could have gotten away with it for a lot longer. That's where most criminals go wrong, they keep stealing.
 
On this side of the pond (Mail Fraud- federal crime) it'd be mind-bogglingly stupid. Risking pound-me-in-the-ass prison time for $20 DVD/BD?
 
They aren't interfering with the mail system, so it wouldn't be mail tampering. They aren't defrauding anyone, so it wouldn't be mail fraud. The feds wouldn't have anything to prosecute. It's just plain theft, so it would be something for the local police.
 
dgingeri said:
They aren't interfering with the mail system, so it wouldn't be mail tampering. They aren't defrauding anyone, so it wouldn't be mail fraud. The feds wouldn't have anything to prosecute. It's just plain theft, so it would be something for the local police.
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Using the Postal Service to facilitate a crime is a crime.
 
dgingeri said:
That's actually kind of smart, except the part where they did it often enough to get caught. If they didn't do it so often, they could have gotten away with it for a lot longer. That's where most criminals go wrong, they keep stealing.
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There was a guy who point blank robbed a casino of chips. It was the 10,000$ chips that did him in. When he tried to unload them, it caused him to get caught. He knew he should have gotten rid of them.

Even the smart criminals get caught eventually. There's no such thing as the perfect crime.
 
What you do is put a sticky barcode on the palm of your hand and scan it when your scanning items at a self checkout.
 
dgingeri said:
They aren't interfering with the mail system, so it wouldn't be mail tampering.
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Using USPS in the commission of a crime is still illegal. It's why postal inspectors go after scammers of all types who use the mail.

Mail Fraud

U.S. Postal Inspectors investigate any crime in which the U.S. Mail is used to further a scheme--whether it originated in the mail, by telephone, or on the Internet. The use of the U.S. Mail is what makes it mail fraud.
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https://postalinspectors.uspis.gov/investigations/mailfraud/mailfraud.aspx

Whether it would be pursued or not is another question.
 
sliverjazz said:
What you do is put a sticky barcode on the palm of your hand and scan it when your scanning items at a self checkout.
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You have to make sure it's for something really cheap.



related story:When I was growing up, the mother of a kid who lived on the next street would change price tags on items at Kmart. This is back when the prices were held on by pins and nothing was computerized. I don't think she was ever caught, but I know she had her kids helping her (3-5yrs old). they moved when I was still young. Later on, someone in the house next door was caught putting barcodes on items at AJ Bayless so they rang up lower.. I know they were caught. I think the cashiers caught on that the price per item didn't match the description. They only got probation, no jail time.
 
az_max said:
related story:When I was growing up, the mother of a kid who lived on the next street would change price tags on items at Kmart. This is back when the prices were held on by pins and nothing was computerized. I don't think she was ever caught, but I know she had her kids helping her (3-5yrs old). they moved when I was still young.
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I don't care if criminals do stuff (I care, but that's their choice to fuck up). But, bringing their kids into it? That's just fucked up. They are probably still doing shit like that.

I think the guys in the OP aren't that dumb. Just greedy. It worked for them, and they didn't get caught until they kept on doing it. Eventually, you get caught. If you get away with it, though, you think you can keep on going...
 
Y'all realize this is across the Atlantic and doesn't concern the USPS...

All the same, who goes to that much trouble to steal DVDs??
 
Highwind said:
Y'all realize this is across the Atlantic and doesn't concern the USPS.
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I'm pretty sure everyone in that sub conversation who responded to the "if" part of the scenario understood it. :p
 
Highwind said:
Y'all realize this is across the Atlantic and doesn't concern the USPS...
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Yup. That's why most of those comments were "in the US, it'd be like...." and things like that. There were even questions as to if the UK had similar things to the US.
 
I've thought about stealing the slipcovers from Blu-ray discs but am not sure what would happen if I were caught.
 
Gotta give points for creative use of the in-store mailing service.

Couldn't have been pulled off at a better place. ASDA is like a Wal-Mart with erectile dysfunction desperately needing Viagra; they do not have the feel of a Wal-Mart despite being owned by them.
 
sir-gold said:
It's a lot harder to sell a torrented movie than a physical DVD on the black market.
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Why would anyone buy a dvd on the black market?
One can download the dvd iso and burn it.
 
Ocean said:
Why would anyone buy a dvd on the black market?
One can download the dvd iso and burn it.
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People buy DVDs on amazon, ebay, and craigslist all the time.

I didn't mean the traditional black market, I just meant stealing to resell.
 
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