Two New Yorkers arrested at Costco after alleged fraudulent credit card shopping spree

Two suspected shoplifters were arrested at a Costco location Sunday after allegedly attempting to use fraudulent credit cards to steal merchandise, authorities said.

The incident occurred around 3 p.m. in South Windsor, Connecticut, the South Windsor Police Department (SWPD) said Monday.

Police said the pair are suspected serial Costco shoplifters and identified them as 35-year-old Brittany A. Howard of the Bronx, New York, and 34-year-old Kasheem M. Williams of Brooklyn.

“Officers responded to Costco (1220 Tamarack Ave) for reports of two shoplifters actively stealing from the store and attempting to pay at the self-checkout with fraudulent credit cards,” SWPD said.

According to authorities, store staff had been warned that the same suspects had allegedly attempted a similar scheme at a Costco location in Enfield, roughly a 30-minute drive north.

Responding officers later discovered 28 stolen financial documents, all under different names, inside the suspects’ vehicle, along with goods believed to have been stolen from the other Costco location, police said.

After the suspects were taken into custody, authorities said both individuals were found to have active out-of-state warrants.

Williams had an extraditable warrant out of Suffolk County, New York, on multiple charges including burglary, strangulation and assault. 

Howard was found to have an extraditable warrant out of Hudson County, New Jersey, on credit card theft charges.

Both suspects now face additional charges, including 28 counts of payment card theft, larceny, identity theft and conspiracy.

Police said the pair were held on $250,000 surety bonds and were scheduled to appear in Manchester Superior Court Monday morning.