Malvin Hallock told Albany, Georgia police that he was inspired to start forging his own coupons after he heard about the practice while in jail on a separate offense.
When he was released from prison, Hallock began falsifying ridiculously high-value coupons -- like $9 off Maxwell House or $7 off Purina Dog Chow -- and redeeming them at Walmart locations from North Carolina through Florida. He then sold his fraudulently obtained goods at flea markets and on Craigslist.
I have a couple of thoughts about this particular case.
First, I'm interested to know what kind of cashier would blindly accept a $9 off Maxwell House coupon -- let alone multiple cashiers across multiple cities and states. Especially considering how frequently readers at the San Antonio Budget Grocery Facebook page report issues using coupons from the newspaper at Walmart.
I hate to say it, but something tells me that cashiers were involved in the scam too -- just like the large coupon fraud ring busted in Houston earlier this year.
Secondly, if this guy was driving all over the Southeast pulling this scam, I bet he spent more money on gas than he would have just buying items at full price or with legitimate coupons! Morale of the story: any business tip you learn while in jail is probably not a solid one.
Apparently Walmart is now aware of the issue, so don't be surprised if cashiers take a little longer inspecting your coupons at checkout going forward.
Read more about the Georgia coupon fraud case here and here.
Check out other crazy coupon fraud and shoplifting cases here.
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Just makes it harder on those of us that do it properly, and on the cashiers that don't get paid enough to be investigators also.
ReplyDeleteI doubt it was only $2000 since they also claim that they busted him selling all of these items obtained through counterfeit coupons at a local flea market in his town.
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