Two Cobb County men are accused of stealing nearly $26,000 from Home Depot through at least 42 fraudulent transactions they made while working.
Stevie Lee Taylor and Anthony Copland allegedly took identification information from dozens of people and entered product codes into the store’s computer system to appear as though items were being returned to the Austell store, according to arrest warrants obtained by The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Copland allegedly put the fraudulent refunds on store gift cards, which Taylor allegedly took to other stores to cash or sold to victims, the warrants state.
Taylor and Copland communicated through hundreds of text messages between March 23 and April 9, when the alleged thefts occurred, according to the Cobb County Sheriff’s Office. Now, each will face nearly two dozen felony charges for the heist, including identity fraud, computer theft, computer forgery and racketeering, warrants state.
“Taylor would direct Copland as to how much money he needed via fraudulent returns and the two would write down product numbers for entry into the register to forge entries into the computer system to make the returns appear as valid,” the warrants state. “Copland did enter real and fictitious drivers license numbers at least 42 times into the computer system of Home Depot to make it appear as if the persons listed in the drivers licenses actually returned the products.”
Taylor, of Marietta, was arrested Friday and booked into the Cobb County jail, where he remained Tuesday night without bond. Copland was not yet in custody Tuesday on the most recent charges, according to jail records.
Copland, of Smyrna, was arrested in April and charged with felony theft by taking in the same case, records show. Further investigation led to the additional charges.
Other suspects may also be involved in the operation, investigators said.
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