Three Chinese men from New York recently appeared in a Rhode Island court in South Kingstown, facing allegations of altering and forging gift cards for fraudulent activities across various stores in the state. Two of the men were arrested in February of this year, while the third was apprehended in March. Law enforcement recovered over 6,000 tampered gift cards from their possession.
According to local police, 45-year-old Quanbin Huang and 46-year-old Zhixiong Lu, both citizens of China residing in Middletown, New York, are also facing immigration charges for illegally entering the U.S. from the southern border in 2023. The third suspect was arrested in Narragansett, Rhode Island.
The unraveling of this case began in February when a CVS employee in South Kingstown noticed a suspicious individual attempting to return a gift card to the store’s shelf. The employee questioned the man, took note of his license plate, and reported the incident to the police. Officers soon intercepted and detained two of the suspects, discovering three boxes containing 1,848 altered gift cards in their vehicle, along with an additional 935 tampered gift cards obtained from CVS.
In March, 36-year-old Zhongzhen Lin was arrested under similar circumstances at a Walgreens in Narragansett, with police seizing 4,387 altered gift cards from his vehicle.
All three men have been charged with forgery, counterfeiting, and conspiracy. Huang was released on a $1,000 bond, while Lu and Lin were released on $5,000 bonds each. The suspects have agreed to be extradited back to New York for trial. Authorities suspect they may be part of a retail theft ring involved in gift card scams.
South Kingstown Police Chief Matthew C. Moynihan highlighted that organized retail crime is becoming a widespread issue. “This is the second time in just over a month that members of an international crime organization have been apprehended in Rhode Island. It’s crucial for the public to be aware that there may still be thousands of forged or altered gift cards in our stores,” he noted. He advised consumers to purchase gift cards online when possible and to ask staff to retrieve physical cards directly from behind the counter. Law enforcement also encourages more victims to come forward and report similar incidents.
