SEATTLE — A Marysville man who allegedly figured out how to hack Target’s gift card system has been indicted on federal wire fraud charges.
Jeffery D. Mann, 29, appeared Tuesday in U.S. District Court in Seattle. Four others are believed to be part of the scheme, according to a news release from the U.S. Attorney’s Office. One man is from Kirkland, and two others, Kennady Weston, 22, and Derrick Quintana, 26, are from Everett. Weston and Quintana are wanted by law enforcement.
The group is accused of netting more than $785,000. The scheme lasted from May 2017 through December, when Target made changes to its gift card system, according to prosecutors.
Mann reportedly figured out an algorithm to access the balances of thousands of gift cards. Those card numbers then were used to buy merchandise in at least five states.
The actual owners of the cards lost their balances, the release states.
Lynnwood police assisted with the federal investigation. Evidence in the case included a Subaru stolen in south Snohomish County. Inside were handwritten notes about Jeff Mann, according to earlier charges. The notes mentioned going to Target stores that hadn’t been “burnt yet.”
Mann was arrested in Snohomish County in March.
A federal conviction on wire fraud can bring up to 20 years in prison.
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