Florida social media influencer arrested for stealing from Target

A popular social media influencer in Florida has been arrested after allegedly stealing from Target.

Target says a woman, later identified as Marlena Velez, entered a store in Cape Coral on October 30 and began shopping.

While at the self-checkout, police scanned barcodes for items of lesser value before walking out of the store.

“Initially, our officers got a report from Target about this shoplifting. They investigated it. They got the security footage. They had a still image of this woman basically ripping off the self-checkout at Target,” said Mercedes Simonds, public information officer for the Cape Coral Police Department.

Police said the stolen items, including household goods and clothing, were valued at more than $500.

Cape Police

After police posted the suspect’s photo to their Facebook and Instagram accounts, an anonymous caller identified the woman as Velez.
A video on her TikTok account documents herself getting ready to leave her house on October 30 wearing the same outfit and glasses as in the surveillance video.

Velez is now charged with theft.

This story was originally reported by Shari Armstrong and Dominga Murray at Scripps News Fort Myers.