TikTok influencer arrested after allegedly flaunting shoplifted Target goods on video: Shes been living recklessly
A Florida-based TikTok influencer was arrested after showing off goods she allegedly shoplifted from her local Target in a video posted to her over 300K followers.Marlena Velez, 22, is facing petty theft charges for allegedly stealing more than $500 from the Target store in Cape Coral on Oct.30, according to the Fort Myers News-Press.The retail chain’s loss prevention team told the Cape Coral police that a shoplifter was allegedly caught on security camera at a self-checkout register, where they scanned a fake barcode that listed lower prices for the items in their cart.Police said the suspect stole 16 items, including household goods and clothes, valued at $500.32.Officers reviewed and verified Target’s security footage and then posted a picture of the suspect on the department’s social media account in hopes the public could identify her.Velez, who posts videos about her life as a mom to two kids on TikTok, was then identified as the shoplifter by an anonymous caller claiming to be one of her followers, police said.The anonymous caller also provided officers with her Instagram handle, which had a link to Velez’s TikTok account.Her TikTok page included a get-ready-with-me video from the day of the alleged shoplifting incident and showed her wearing the same outfit and glasses the suspect was wearing in the target security footage, according to Fox 4 Now.The since-deleted TikTok video also showed her documenting herself picking out items inside the Target and placing them in her car afterward.“She essentially incriminated herself,” Cape Coral Police Department spokesperson Officer Riley Carter told The Express Tribune.“Social media gave us an unexpected lead, which expedited her identification and subsequent arrest.”Velez was arrested on Thursday and charged with one count of petit theft of more than $100, less than $750.The TikTokker’s crime also brought to light her prior criminal history.In 2019, Velez was arrested when she was just 17 on gr...