Who can afford to purchase over $4,000 worth of electronics in one shopping trip? Well, two men allegedly tried but failed last week as observant employees at a well known electronics store realized the cards being used were counterfeit and called the police.
Falls Township Police were dispatched to Best Buy, Commerce Blvd in Fairless Hills for a fraud complaint on Tuesday, June 4, 2024 at approximately 5 p.m.
Two male suspects allegedly attempted to use fraudulent gift cards allegedly valued at approximately $4,500 worth for electronics purchases. Police said,
Kang Sheng Huang,27, and Ran Yan, 33, both from Philadelphia, were detained while an investigation into the allegations was conducted.
According to Huang’s affidavit, he purchased two Netgear Nighthawks, each valued at approximately $500 and left the store to put them in his vehicle. He then returned and attempted to purchase other items. Before he was able to leave the store with the additional items, the employees realized the gift cards were “fake.” The total value of his alleged theft was a little over $2,800.
Yan allegedly tried to purchase a Sandisk 512GB SD Card and a DJI Air 3 Fly More Combo totaling a little over $1,600. The criminal complaint showed Yan was unable to complete the transaction because the employees detected the gift cards were fraudulent.
Both were taken into custody and appeared before on-call Magisterial District Judge Daniel Baranoski.
Court records showed Huang was charged with four felonies; two counts of access device fraud, and two counts of theft by deception. He was also charged with two lesser counts of receiving stolen property.
Yan was charged with one felony count of access device fraud and two lesser charges of theft by deception, court records show.
Both accused men were unable to post bail of 10%/$50,000 and were remanded to Bucks County Correctional Facility (BCCF). Their preliminary hearings are scheduled for July 30, 2024.