A TikTok influencer who showed off stolen items worth $500 in a video has been arrested

Last update:November 26, 2024, 12:08 pm EST

The 22-year-old influencer, identified as Marlena Velez, allegedly stole 16 items worth over $500.

A Florida-based TikTok influencer was arrested after she was seen on video flaunting merchandise she allegedly robbed. An influencer has been charged with theft for allegedly stealing over $500 worth of items from a Target store in Cape Coral.

The incident, which took place on October 30, was recorded on a security camera. According to the website, 22-year-old influencer Marlena Velez stole 16 items worth over $500. Fort Myers News Press.

Velez posted the video online to her 300,000 TikTok followers. The Cape Coral Police Department said the store’s loss prevention team alerted authorities that a shoplifter had used a fake bar code at the self-checkout to scan discounted items.

After reviewing footage from the store’s surveillance camera, police shared a photo of the suspect on their social media accounts. An anonymous caller then provided police with information about the suspect’s identity and directed them to her Instagram account, which was associated with TikTok. It is speculated that the interlocutor was one of Velez’s followers.

After scanning her TikTok page, police found a getting ready video from the day of the alleged shoplifting. The video shows Velez wearing the same outfit and glasses she wore in the Target surveillance video.

Velez also recorded herself choosing products in the store and then taking them home with her.

“Everything has been documented,” department spokeswoman Mercedes Phillips said in a video posted to the department’s Facebook account. New York Times. The video appears to have been deleted.

According to the press release, Velez was arrested and charged with one count of petty theft.

World of news A TikTok influencer who showed off stolen items worth $500 in a video has been arrested