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The arrests resulted from an incident on Wednesday, Nov. 15 around 2 p.m., when a senior citizen reported to authorities that three people had stolen their debit card at the Stop & Shop supermarket at 420 White Plains Rd. in Eastchester.
According to Eastchester Police, the victim had just left the store when they were approached by three unknown people in the parking lot. The suspects claimed that there had been a mix-up during checking out and that they owed the victim money.
They then allegedly pretended to give the victim money while simultaneously stealing their debit card from their wallet, police said.
An investigation conducted by the department later revealed that the trio had arrived at the store and had not bought anything. Instead, they allegedly worked together to wait in line and watched the victim enter their debit card pin number while they checked out.
After stealing the debit card, the trio fled the area. However, they were soon identified and stopped by authorities who found several stolen cards from previous victims inside their vehicle, according to the department.
The suspects were identified as Laura Bengoi, age 34; Loredana Iftima, age 40; and Robert Turcanu, age 40, who all had a last verifiable address in Romania. The trio was charged with:
- Fourth-degree grand larceny;
- Fourth-degree criminal possession of stolen property.
They were later released on their own recognizance, according to police.
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