Man accused of multi-state retail theft scheme arrested in Utah

SALT LAKE CITY ( ABC4 ) — A man accused of traveling the country and stealing products from home improvement stores before returning them for money was apprehended in Utah on Tuesday, Nov. 5.

Manuel Gonzalez, 52, was booked into the Salt Lake County Metro Jail and faces second-degree felony retail theft, theft, and pattern of unlawful activity.

According to court documents, Gonzalez would go to home improvement stores and pick a boxed item such as a bathroom vanity. He would allegedly then fill the box with electrical breakers and check out, hiding the breakers and only paying for the bathroom vanity. Police claim Gonzalez would then return to the store with the boxed item for a full refund.

The Utah Attorney General's Office said Gonzalez would do this from state to state. According to court documents, Gonzalez targeted dozens of stores in Utah from Layton to St. George, defrauding stores of over $82,000.

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"Massive shoplifting organizations were costing retailers and consumers tens of billions annually," said Utah Attorney General Sean Reyes, later adding, "I am so proud of our [Crimes Against Statewide Economy] investigative team led by Supervising Special Agent James Russell. This most recent arrest of Manuel Gonzalez, who was traveling state to state to steal significant volumes of home building products from multiple locations is a win for Utah and neighboring states."

Police said Gonzalez was found with several hundreds of home improvement products, including electrical breakers, outlets, tools, and carbon monoxide detectors. Gonzalez allegedly admitted to stealing the products and selling them on the streets.

Charges are allegations only. All arrested persons are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.