On 6/26/17, at approximately 5:40 p.m., a man inquired if a store sold high-end watches. He said he wanted to get his son a watch and asked if the store had any in the $5000 range. The sales associate felt uncomfortable and communicated non-verbally to another associate, who stepped in to take over the transaction.
The suspect tried on watches and after 5 minutes he decided on a high-end watch for almost $19,000. He then asked if the store had financing available. The associate got an application and had the suspect fill out the paperwork. After the associate asked for his Driver’s License and credit card information he excused himself to his car. The vehicle was a light blue Mercedes with no license plate. The suspect sat in the passenger seat. A second male subject sat in the driver’s seat. The first suspect smoked a cigarette and then reentered the business with a license and a credit card.
The suspect said he was visiting from Florida and produced a FL driver’s license. At that point, associates began checking his license against the I.D. Checking guide. Associates found inconsistencies in the suspects license (the suspects card should have had a star with a circle around it). The license was also issued four years ago and looked new.
The suspect would not walk away from the counter while associates were processing his application. He was also visibly nervous. At that point, the store manager told associates to slow down the process and called police. Police responded and began to question the suspect in the store. He refused to answer questions and the police detained him for an hour until all information could be verified. The suspect’s driver’s license and credit card was found to be fraudulent. When the officers received the image from the Florida DMV of the person who lived at the address on the driver’s license, it was not the same image of the suspect. He was immediately arrested. His accomplice was also arrested.