Everybody loves Legos, those colorful little blocks that can be used to create anything an imagination can conceive. But in Peoria, Arizona, pirates–and not the cute little toy kind–have been selling stolen Lego sets online for profit until authorities finally busted the ring this week.
Troy Koehler, 40, has been arrested as part of a $250,000 dollar scheme that saw Koehler and three accomplices steal Lego sets from local Phoenix-area Toys R Us stores. Then the thieves would damage the boxes, and Koehler, an area realtor, would go back to the Toy R Us store and buy a new set in cash. He would then go to another store and exchange the stolen set with the good receipt, getting his cash back, while still possessing a good, pristine Lego set that could be sold online on sites like Ebay.
Garry Fairbee, 35, Melissa Dailey, 34, and Tarah Dailey, 33, also face the same felony charges as Koehler’s in the scam. According to ABC 15 , Phoenix Police have been investigating the suspects for over four months. Authorities are unsure of how long the Lego laundering was going on before the investigation began, but when Koehler was busted, his garage was full of Lego sets valued at over a quarter of a million dollars.
As reported by local Phoenix CBS affiliate KPHO , neighbors of Koehler knew that he dealt with the popular toy aftermarket, but they were unaware of the alleged criminal activities. Dominic Puccia, a neighbor, recounts Koehler’s suspicious racket.
“It does surprise me, but they’ve always been kind of suspicious. He would have late-night phone calls and he’d be out for hours, past midnight just talking on the phone and we didn’t know why.”
Koehler and his partners in crime are awaiting arraignment in Phoenix for the scheme.
According to a report on CNN , Arizona isn’t the only state dealing with Lego crimes. Authorities in Long Island, New York arrested 53-year-old Gladys Haas for stealing sets and selling them on ebay. Haas’ operation was not as extensive as Koehler’s.
Legos are a multi-billion dollar a year business, with new sets based off of popular licenses like Star Wars , Marvel and DC Comics, and The Lord of the Rings films, and The Lego Movie , starring the voices of Chris Pratt ( Guardians of the Galaxy , TV’s Parks and Recreation ) and Will Arnett (TV’s Arrested Development , Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles ) which, as reported on The Inquisitr , premiered this past February to a $69 million dollar opening weekend on-route to a $250 million dollar worldwide total.
The next time you buy Legos online, be aware that if the price is too good to be true, they could very well be stolen goods.
[Images courtesy of the Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office and CNN]
