A sting operation set up by the Royal Canadian Mounted Police in collaboration with multiple flooring retailers led to the recovery of $100,000 of fraudulently purchased hardwood flooring, Global News reported.
Peter Kowalski of Kelowna, B.C.-based Kelowna Floors alerted police after becoming suspicious about a deal involving the sale of $30,000 of hardwood flooring to someone named “Steve Brown.” The sale involved shipping the hardwood flooring across the country, and Kowalski began to question the buyer after he was provided a copy of their identification.
Police confirmed the identity was false, and Kowalski learned through associates that the suspect had made similar purchases using a fraudulent credit card at competing flooring businesses, including Express Flooring and Dannburg Flooring.
Police reached out to the owners of Express Flooring, who informed them that a pickup of the fraudulent purchase had been scheduled. The RCMP intercepted a freight truck July 7 and managed to recover $100,000-worth of fraudulently obtained hardwood flooring.
The driver and passenger of the truck were arrested but soon released, with police believing they were unaware of the fraud being perpetrated and were merely hired to pick up the orders.
The vehicle had multiple other pickups scheduled, according to RCMP.
“This is a textbook example of why stores should have internal policies as it relates to high-value purchases using credit cards, especially over the phone,” Cpl. Michael Gauthier stated. “Thanks to an observant store owner and cooperation from a few others, we recovered and likely prevented another handful of high-value, fraudulent purchases.”
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