PITTSBURGH — A man was sentenced to three years in jail for stealing gift cards from Pittsburgh-area Wal-Mart stores and surrounding counties, then altering those cards to receive payouts, Attorney General Michelle Henry announced Tuesday.
Zhixiang Chen, a 20-year-old Chinese national who is in the United States illegally, pleaded guilty on Friday in Lawrence County to corrupt organizations and organized retail crime.
The judge ordered Chen to forfeit $16,143 and equipment used to commit the crimes and pay a $25,000 fine, Henry said. He has also been banned from Wal-Mart stores and is facing potential deportation action.
“This defendant not only committed high-dollar thefts from retail stores, he also victimized consumers who bought the gift cards he had returned to store shelves after altering them for his own profit. After the gift cards were loaded with value by unsuspecting purchasers, the defendant would drain the balances leaving them with worthless cards,” Attorney General Henry said. “This conviction and prison sentence show our commitment to combating organized retail theft crimes that harm businesses and consumers.”
Surveillance footage showed that Chen stole many Apple gift cards from at least six Wal-Mart stores in western Pennsylvania. He then altered the cards to redirect the funds to himself before putting them back on store shelves. Customers who then purchased the altered cards would have the balance drained.
Henry said it is believed that Chen and his associates profited hundreds of thousands of dollars through the scheme.
In May 2024, Chen was caught trying to leave a Wal-Mart with 126 gift cards hidden inside his jacket. Authorities later found nearly 4,000 more Apple gift cards, potentially worth nearly $1 million, in his car, along with cash and equipment used to alter the cards.
Frazer Township Police Department and Homeland Security Investigations-Pittsburgh assisted the Office of Attorney General in the investigation.
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