Man accused of renting equipment worth $800,000 from Home Depot dollars and not returning it

MACON, Georgia (TMX/Gray News) – A Georgia man is facing charges in connection with an $800,000 scheme to fraudulently rent equipment and tools from Home Depot and then not return them, the United States Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia announced on Tuesday.

Yasin Saleem, 45, of Macon, was indicted in June by a federal grand jury on charges of conspiracy and wire fraud. He was charged on Friday.

“Saleem and a group of conspirators allegedly used fictitious driver’s licenses and fraudulent debit cards to exploit security vulnerabilities in Home Depot’s equipment and tool rental service, stealing more than $800,000,” U.S. Attorney Ryan K. Buchanan said in a statement.

According to the indictment, Salem and co-conspirators allegedly used fake driver’s licenses to conceal their identities while renting equipment and tools from Home Depot.

They used debit cards with names matching fake licenses, even though the accounts had the minimum funds necessary to complete the rental.

Salem and co-conspirators then allegedly failed to return the items, turning off their GPS devices to avoid detection. There were insufficient funds on the debit cards used for rentals to pay for the stolen items.

In total, Saleem and co-conspirators allegedly stole over $800,000 worth of equipment.

The FBI continues to investigate this case.