Two women and a man, all from Romania, have been sentenced to federal prison for their roles in a short-change scheme that cost Target stores across the country, including the Target store in Arnold, a total of at least $308,531. The three were arrested in Arnold in 2022, the U.S, Attorney’s Office announced.
On Aug. 7, U.S. District Judge Sarah E. Pitlyk sentenced Daniel Rostas, 30, to 15 months in prison and Loredana Angel, 35, to 10 months in prison. On May 31, Pitlyk sentenced Legenda Rostas, 28, to two years in prison and ordered her to repay $224,666, the report said.
Restitution amounts for Angel and Daniel Rostas have not yet been determined.
The three pleaded guilty earlier this year in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Missouri to wire fraud and illegal reentry of an alien, according to court documents.
The three were arrested Oct. 14, 2022, at the Home Depot store, 3865 Vogel Road, in Arnold after a store employee who recognized Daniel Rostas as a possible shoplifting suspect called police. An officer found Daniel Rostas, who said his name was Sorin Coman, inside a 2017 Chrysler parked outside the store. While talking with him, Legenda Rostas and Angel began walking toward the van but then went inside the store, according to their plea agreements.
Officers went into the store and found the two women looking out a window at the van where other officers were talking with Daniel Rostas. The women said their names were Evelin Gomez and Denisa Angel, but investigators later determined their real names, according to the report.
All three said they were from cities in New York.
Legenda Rostas told officers they committed no crimes at the Arnold Home Depot but admitted to engaging in criminal activity at the nearby Target store, 3849 Vogel Road. The three admitted that since 2017 they had been using sleight of hand to defraud Target store employees while purchasing gift cards, the report said.
Their plea agreements said they used the scheme at stores in New York, Rhode Island, Indiana and Virginia before being arrested in Arnold. In addition, Daniel Rostas attempted to short-change an employee at a Target in Washington, D.C., according to the report.
When purchasing the gift cards, the three would display the full amount of cash needed for the purchase but then fold over a portion and keep it while handing the rest to store employees. The three targeted younger or less experienced employees, the report said.
The three wired money they got from the schemes to family in Romania, according to the report.
Legenda Rostas took part in schemes that defrauded stores of $224,666. Angel participated in schemes that cost stores $83,865, and Daniel Rostas wired $62,534 to Romania, the report said.
The three also admitted to entering the U.S. illegally through Mexico. Legenda Rostas said they flew on a commercial flight from Portugal to Cancun, Mexico, on Jan. 10, 2022, before reentering the U.S., according to her agreement.
All three previously were removed from the U.S. Angel was removed on June 24, 2019; Daniel Rostas was removed on Nov. 13, 2019, and again on Oct. 14, 2020; and Legenda Rostas was removed on Dec. 28, 2020.
Arnold Police and Homeland Security investigated the case. U.S. assistant prosecuting attorney Kenneth R. Tihen handled the cases.