North Carolina Man Faces 20 Years In Prison For Mailing Fake Returns On Amazon

Amazon Customer Faces 20 Years In Prison For Mailing Fake Returns

A North Carolina man has pleaded guilty to committing fraud after receiving items from Amazon and sending back fake versions of the products.

Court documents state Hudson Hamrick purchased multiple expensive items from Amazon which included an iMac Pro, and returned cheaper items in exchange for a refund.

In total, Hamrick, Hamrick collected more than $290,000 in refunds, and his unique return policy caused Amazon to contact the FBI. “According to plea documents and today’s hearing, from 2016 to 2020, Hamrick executed the return scheme by ordering expensive items through Amazon,” the U.S. Justice Department said in a statement.

“The items include electronics, guitars, tools, computers, and other high-end consumer products, and then obtaining fraudulent refunds from the company by returning items that were significantly cheaper or broken.”

“Hamrick also admitted to defrauding Amazon by obtaining replacement products for items he falsely claimed to have been lost or damaged, and then keeping the new items or reselling them online. Court documents show that Hamrick engaged in more than 300 fraudulent transactions that resulted in losses to the company of more than $290,000.”

According to Insider, there would be instances where Hamrick would purchase an expensive item such as an iMac Pro and filed a return then sent in a non-Pro version of the computer with a different serial number.

On Tuesday, he pleaded guilty to wire fraud and faces a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison along with a $250,000 fine.