Organized Retail Theft Ring Stole $200K From Area Stores: Montco DA

NORRISTOWN, PA — Two brothers from Philadelphia were arrested in Montgomery County this week after police said they operated a high level retail theft ring that stole more than $200,000 from area stores in the past six months.

Cuong Nam Ly, 33, and Chung Nam Ly, 31, purchased products, usually online, then applied a higher-priced UPC code to the box, authorities said. The scheme allowed them to get a higher amount of money back when they returned the item to the store.

“These two defendants were operating a high-volume organized retail theft ring that caused the targeted businesses to suffer significant losses, both through the thefts themselves and through the loss of customers who bought stolen merchandise from the defendants via online marketplaces,” Montgomery County District Attorney Kevin Steele said in a statement.

Upper Moreland Police began investigating with county authorities back in Nov. 2022. Authorities found the brothers were targeting Home Depots and Lowe's stores for most of their returns. The stores were located in Philadelphia, Montgomery, Delaware, Bucks, Luzerne, and Berks counties, police said.

In addition to changing the stickers, the pair kept several high-cost pieces to the products before returning them, including batteries and chargers, and resold them on Facebook Marketplace for cash, according to the DA.

The two men face more than 200 felony counts each of retail theft, conspiracy, corrupt organization, theft by deception, and more. They were arraigned on Sept. 18 and released on $75,000 bail, on the condition they not return to any Lowes or Home Depot store.

A preliminary hearing is set for Oct. 13.