The Florida Department of Law Enforcement (FDLE) on Thursday arrested two men from St. Petersburg on charges of an organized scheme to defraud several stores in Central Florida.
Bryan Hart, 30 and William Farrar, both from St. Petersburg were arrested and booked in the Seminole County Jail.
FDLE began investigating when a Central Florida retail store contacted FDLE’s Orlando Regional Operations Center after discovering Hart and Farrar’s illegal activity. The investigation revealed that the two men were purchasing external computer hard drives from retailers, removing the components inside and replacing them with damaged components. They would return the tampered drives back to the store and obtain refunds. Hart and Farrar then sold the new parts they had removed to other individuals and through online advertising.
The two are believed to have committed similar thefts at multiple stores across 19 Florida counties.
They were both booked into the Seminole County Jail on Thursday night.
Hart is expected to make a first appearance in court today, August 13th, at 1:30 pm. Farrar is due to be arraigned on September 28th.
