Buyer faces charges because through a sneaky empty-box ploy he ‘saw him stealing $200,000 worth of luxury clothing over a 12-month period’

A real estate agent has been accused of stealing $200,000 worth of Lululemon clothing in an elaborate scheme.
While retail crime typically takes place locally, the alleged scammer is accused of defrauding the luxury sportswear company by placing orders online.
Mark Tilley, 55, of Bradenton, Fla., allegedly places orders through the Lululemon website using several different credit cards, according to Lululemon’s Organized Retail Crime Investigation Group.
He allegedly frequently used other people’s names and shipped the orders to different addresses within his Magnolia Estates apartment complex.
Tilley would primarily use the same phone number to bypass the retailer’s fraud detection system, according to arrest documents he obtained WFLA allegedly.
The purchases were often linked to an IP address allegedly linked to Tilley’s Gmail account.


Investigators said Tilley will update the shipping address for the items at his community leasing office once the shipments are on their way.
Later, he would pick up the packages at his office, according to investigators.
Tilley was accused of making an expedited return to get his money back.
Once his return package was scanned at a local USPS self-service kiosk, he received credit for the e-gift card, the outlet reports.
However, he reportedly sent Lululemon an empty return box.
He then reportedly took the clothes he allegedly stole and brought them back to stores in several states for double the credit, according to the outlet.
The Sarasota County Sheriff’s Office found that Tilley allegedly defrauded the retailer of $200,000 over a 12-month period.
Tilley was charged with grand larceny worth over $100,000.
Lululemon has also been plagued by robberies at its brick-and-mortar stores, though these have not been linked to Tilley.
For example, video shared on social media showed a group of masked shoplifters ransacking a Lululemon store in Peachtree Corners, Georgia, while workers urged them to stop.