Two defendants are said to have helped sell stolen goods worth millions

The 52-year-old Warwick man verbally abused investigators when they searched his home and found allergy medications and cosmetic products labeled with the logos of stores such as CVS and Walgreens.

The products in Norman L. Cipriano's basement were among approximately 60,000 items seized as part of a broad investigation into a shoplifting spree in Rhode Island that targeted retailers across the country, U.S. Attorney Zachary A. Cunha said Monday.

And both Cipriano and his 59-year-old local colleague Patrick M. Vigneau of Cranston held high-ranking wholesale positions in the scheme, which relied heavily on shoplifting and generated about $12.3 million in sales over a period of several years, Cunha said.

“If I were younger, I would kick your ass (expletive),” Cipriano told investigators when they searched his home on Sept. 11, according to documents filed in federal court.

Two Rhode Island ‘diverters’ arrested, prosecutors say

Both men were arrested and taken into custody early Monday after last week's raids at locations in Pawtucket, Warwick and Cranston added new momentum to a three-year investigation by the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, Department of Homeland Security and Warwick police.

Investigators found “huge quantities of stolen” goods, mainly cosmetics and over-the-counter medicines, Cunha said at a press conference on Monday afternoon.

At one location in Pawtucket, for example, they entered an interior room where “all kinds of stolen goods were neatly organized, stacked and ready for resale,” said Cunha, who compared the room to a “warehouse.”

According to prosecutors, the value of the 60,000 items seized by investigators is estimated at around $1.6 million.

According to their information, the investigators needed three vans, each 7.3 meters long, to transport the stolen goods.

While investigators were working at a Cipriano-owned location in Pawtucket, UPS arrived at the scene and delivered 10 to 15 more boxes of health and beauty products and auto accessories, according to an affidavit prepared in support of the arrest warrants.

As part of the investigation, authorities also froze several bank and e-commerce accounts.

How organised retail crime works

Court documents say Cipriano and Vigneau's camp activities reflected their involvement in a criminal conspiracy involving a whole team of lawbreakers.

Cunha had a diagram on an easel.

Some members of the organization who are recruited to steal goods from store shelves are called “boosters.”

“This theft does not happen randomly,” Cunha said, adding that the thieves specifically steal certain items on the orders of a foreman.

The boss tells them what to steal and pays them for their work, often in cash or cryptocurrency, he said.

Such schemes also involve the assistance of middlemen and logistics coordinators, known as fences, who provide storage services and cleaning services to remove labels from stolen items, he said.

At the top of the ladder are “diverters” like Cipriano and Vigneau. Diverters often set up shell companies to conceal their role and launder illicit proceeds.

Their detour affects small and medium-sized retailers who unknowingly purchase the stolen goods. They also sell the goods to end consumers via online marketplaces.

The schemes often use e-commerce marketplaces to advertise and offer their goods and rely on unregulated third-party processors such as PayPal to avoid detection.

Cipriano and Vigneau operated under the names of various shell companies and, along with others, sold large quantities of stolen goods through e-commerce sites such as eBay, Walmart and Amazon.

A crime with victims

Last year, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce calculated that shoplifting caused economic damage of $125.7 billion. And that figure does not even include the $14.9 billion in lost tax revenue.

“Contrary to popular belief, organized retail crime is not a victimless crime,” said Homeland Security Investigations Special Agent in Charge Michael J. Krol.

“When gangs of thieves undermine international trade and supply chains,” he said, “we all pay.”

Both suspects have previous convictions, prosecutors say

Cipriano and Vigneau are charged with interstate transportation of stolen goods, conspiracy to commit interstate transportation of stolen goods, money laundering, conspiracy to commit money laundering, and engaging in monetary transactions involving assets derived from illegal activities.

According to court records, Cipriano was convicted in Rhode Island state court in 2005. He served a six-year prison sentence for conspiracy and receiving stolen goods. In August 2013, Cipriano was sentenced to 50 months in a federal prison for trafficking in counterfeit goods.

A federal court jury found Vigneau guilty of charges including possession of marijuana with intent to distribute marijuana and conspiracy to commit money laundering. He was released from federal prison in 2020. He is serving a sentence under federal probation.

This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Ly T. Chin.

Two defendants are said to have helped sell stolen goods worth millions

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