A California man has been arrested for allegedly stealing thousands of dollars in Lego sets from Target by returning boxes filled with pasta instead of the original toys. The Irvine Police Department announced the arrest of 28-year-old Jarrelle Augustine on 14 April, accusing him of grand theft in a scheme that involved swapping valuable figurines with dried pasta.
Police said in a Facebook post that Target reported at least 70 thefts linked to Augustine, totalling about $34,000 in losses. The retailer's loss prevention department noticed that one returned Lego box was open and missing figurines, prompting an investigation. Augustine allegedly bought Lego sets, removed the figurines, and sometimes replaced all components with pasta noodles before returning them.
Irvine police public information officer Ziggy Azarcon said investigators determined Augustine was responsible for dozens of fraudulent returns. The financial losses stem from Target's inability to resell the tampered products. It is unclear whether Augustine has legal representation.
The case is part of a series of Lego theft incidents. In April, authorities seized about $1m in Legos from stolen freight trailers in Riverside County. In March, a Vallejo man was charged with stealing nearly $25,000 from Target using a similar method, and another man was arrested last fall for allegedly stealing hundreds of thousands in Legos for resale.
