Current:Home > ContactMan faces potential deportation after sentencing in $300,000 Home Depot theft scheme, DOJ says -ChatGPT
Man faces potential deportation after sentencing in $300,000 Home Depot theft scheme, DOJ says
View
Date:2025-04-13 17:37:42
A former Connecticut resident could face deportation after being sentenced on allegations of stealing nearly $300,000 worth of Home Depot merchandise.
The Justice Department's District of Rhode Island office announced that Alexandre Henrique Costa-Mota, a 27-year-old Brazilian national, was sentenced to time served, three years of federal supervised release, and to pay $297,332 in restitution to Home Depot, on Tuesday.
Costa-Mota pleaded guilty in November 2023 to charges of wire fraud and conspiracy.
Costa-Mota will be turned over to Immigration and Customs Enforcement to face possible deportation, the Department of Justice said.
Man stole items, returned returned them for store credit: DOJ
Prosecutors said that on at least 60 occasions from at least June 2021 to February 2022, Costa-Mota stole merchandise from Home Depot and then returned them for store credit.
According to the Department of Justice, Costa-Mota went to at least 40 different store locations across multiple states including stores in Rhode Island, Connecticut, Massachusetts, Maine, Maryland, Pennsylvania, New York, and New Jersey.
He's accused of using fake driver's licenses and IDs to avoid being caught. In total, he collected and spent $297,332 in store credit.
"It is alleged that Costa-Mota entered stores empty handed, dressed to appear like a contractor. He then collected Anderson doors, which he brought to each store’s Service Department where he made non-receipted returns of the doors," the Justice Department said.
Costa-Mota received store credit for the returns, which he would then redeem at other locations, prosecutors say.
Prosecutors said if one store refused to accept his returns, he would leave and take the merchandise to another store for store credit.
veryGood! (37)
Related
- Megan Fox's ex Brian Austin Green tells Machine Gun Kelly to 'grow up'
- Car bomb explosions and hostage-taking inside prisons underscore Ecuador’s fragile security
- Why Pregnant Shawn Johnson Is Convinced She's Having Another Baby Girl
- 14-year-old accused of trying to drown Black youth in pond charged with attempted murder
- South Korean president's party divided over defiant martial law speech
- Trump-era rule change allowing the logging of old-growth forests violates laws, judge says
- Florence Pugh says 'people are scared' of her 'cute nipples' after sheer dress backlash
- Why Pregnant Shawn Johnson Is Convinced She's Having Another Baby Girl
- Off the Grid: Sally breaks down USA TODAY's daily crossword puzzle, Triathlon
- Khloe Kardashian Makes Son Tatum Thompson’s Name Official
Ranking
- The FBI should have done more to collect intelligence before the Capitol riot, watchdog finds
- Can Ozempic, Wegovy reduce alcohol, nicotine and other cravings? Doctor weighs in on what to know.
- Massachusetts transit sergeant charged with falsifying reports to cover for second officer
- Federal health agency recommends easing marijuana restrictions
- Off the Grid: Sally breaks down USA TODAY's daily crossword puzzle, Hi Hi!
- Post Malone Proudly Shows Results of His 55-Pound Weight Loss Journey in New Selfie
- Why 'Suits'? We dive into this summer's streaming hit
- Smugglers are steering migrants into the remote Arizona desert, posing new Border Patrol challenges
Recommendation
Former Danish minister for Greenland discusses Trump's push to acquire island
Miley Cyrus reflects on 'controversy' around 'upsetting' Vanity Fair cover
'Tragic': Critically endangered Amur tiger dies in 'freak accident' at Colorado zoo
Bruce Springsteen makes a triumphant New Jersey homecoming with rare song, bare chest
House passes bill to add 66 new federal judgeships, but prospects murky after Biden veto threat
Affected by Idalia or Maui fires? Here's how to get federal aid
Food ads are in the crosshairs as Burger King, others face lawsuits for false advertising
After years of fighting, a praying football coach got his job back. Now he’s unsure he wants it