Providence Man Sentenced For Scheme To Defraud Home Depot

PROVIDENCE, RI — A Providence man who admitted to defrauding Home Depot out of more than a half-million dollars in tools and building supplies was sentenced Thursday to one year and a day in federal prison, federal prosecutors said.

According to court documents, Luiyi Taveras-Garcia, 35, participated in a wide-ranging scheme that used stolen or fraudulently created business credit accounts to defraud Home Depot of $600,000 in building, roofing, electrical, plumbing and other contractor supplies at stores in Rhode Island, Massachusetts and New Hampshire.

Tavares admitted to a federal judge that he also purchased construction materials for use in his roofing business from another member of the conspiracy, who obtained those materials from Home Depot with the use of stolen credit information, prosecutors said.

Along with the prison sentence, Tavares-Garcia will serve three years of supervised released and must pay $46,749 to Citibank, who provided lines of customers to Home Depot customers.

A second defendant charged in this case, Abel Bier Romero, 29, of Cranston, is awaiting trial on charges of conspiracy to commit wire fraud, wire fraud, and aggravated identity theft.