Alleged prolific retail thieves charged by Bob Ferguson’s crime unit

EVERETT, Wash. — Three men who allegedly stole nearly $50,000 of merchandise from Home Depot locations in western Washington have been charged by Attorney General Bob Ferguson’s Organized Retail Crime Unit.

In a release, it announced that Volodymyr Tsuman and Leonid Trotskovets were charged with first-degree organized retail theft, while Volodymyr’s brother Veniamen Tsuman was charged with second-degree organized retail theft.

Prosecutors say the three men used a “double-dipping” scheme where they purchased products for their home improvement business and then went back to those stores with the receipts to steal additional items using their original receipts.

If stopped by employees, the men would show their receipt from the original purchase and exit the store with the unpaid merchandise. Prosecutors say in other thefts, the men would use pick-up paperwork from one location to steal similar merchandise at another Home Depot store, or just not scan items at self-checkout stands.

Volodymyr Tsuman and Trotskovets face a maximum of 10 years in prison and $20,000 in fines, while Veniamen Tsuman faces a 5-year maximum and up to $10,000 in fines.

Prosecutors say the men committed more than 50 thefts at Home Depot locations across Snohomish, Thurston, Pierce and King Counties. The total amount stolen is estimated to be at least $48,878.

This is the sixth prosecution since the Attorney General’s office launched the Organized Retail Crime Unit last year.

More locally, Bellevue police organized its own “Stop The Lift” campaign to combat retail theft in the city this holiday season. The Bellevue Police Department says retail theft accounts for 37% of all crimes and is the city’s most frequent crime.