Man indicted after running sleight of hand scheme at Target stores
ST. LOUIS, Mo. (First Alert 4) - A Romanian man has been indicted for running a “confidence” scheme at Target stores around the nation, including the St. Louis area.
Bobi Covaciu, 38, was indicted in U.S. District Court in St. Louis on April 16, 2025. Two days later, he was arrested in the Southern District of Texas. On Thursday, May 22, he was brought to St. Louis, where he appeared in court and pleaded not guilty.
In the indictment, Covaciu is accused of running a “confidence” or “sleight-of-hand” scheme at Target stores nationwide from September 2023 to September 2024. The places he is accused of scamming include a Target in eastern Missouri.
The indictment claims that Covaciu would trick cashiers into believing that he paid the full amount of cash for a purchase, but would then pocket the bills, shortchanging the retailer. The court documents say this would often short the retailer by hundreds of dollars per incident.
Court documents state that Covaciu had returned what was bought for full cash refunds on multiple occasions.
A transaction that is referred to in the indictment, Covaciu pocketed $2,300 of a $2,865 transaction.
Wire fraud is punishable by up to 20 years in prison, a $250,000 fine or both prison and a fine.
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