Four individuals residing in the Los Angeles area and San Bernardino County have been indicted for allegedly tricking victims into buying thousands of gift cards from the retailer Target.
Bowen Hu, 26, of Hacienda Heights and Tairan Shi, 27, of Diamond Bar, both Chinese nationals, were arrested Tuesday in connection with the indictment.
Two other defendants, Blade Bai, 33, of El Monte and Yan Fu, 58, of Chino Hills are expected to appear in federal court next month. Bai is reportedly a U.S. citizen; Fu is a Chinese national, according to prosecutors.
The indictment alleged Bai, Hu and Shi obtained 5,000 “fraudulently purchased” gift cards, then distributed them to “runners,” including Fu, who used them at Target locations in L.A. and Orange counties to buy electronics and other valuables. Those items were then resold for profit.
All four have been charged with conspiracy to commit money laundering.
Prosecutors said the cards were originally bought by victims of the scheme. Defendants convinced them they needed to purchase the cards to resolve purported crises. For example, the alleged fraudsters would claim to be police officers and order victims to make the purchases so that fake arrest warrants might be wiped from their records.
The cards were then distributed to runners through an online group called the "Magic Lamp," according to prosecutors.
They said Fu visited as many as 17 Target stores in a single day to make purchases with the fraudulently obtained cards. Bai then allegedly resold the goods purchased.
In all, the defendants laundered more than $2.5 million between 2019 and 2020, according to the indictment. They each face felony sentences of up to 20 years in prison.
