LOUISVILLE, Ky. — Jeffersontown Police have arrested two men for allegedly stealing more than $300,000 worth of merchandise from multiple Louisville-area Lowe's stores.
Aubrey Walker and William Walker were charged with engaging in organized crime and theft by deception, according to their arrest citations.
On Tuesday, WHAS11 witnessed authorities taking several recovered items from a home in west Louisville. The stolen merchandise included water heaters, cabinets and construction materials.
Investigators believe a total of five people are involved in this organized crime ring targeting Lowe's stores in and around Louisville from May to November of this year.
Jeffersontown Police are searching for three more men they believe were part of this organized crime ring; Robert Lewis, Anthony Phillips and Gary Carman.
According to the arrest citations, both Aubrey and William would select a piece of merchandise and take it to the customer service counter where they would use a company account to "purchase" the item. When the company accounts were billed, officials discovered the men were not employed by the company, the charged wasn't authorized and Lowe's never got paid for the items.
The total amount of money Lowe's lost due to these crimes was $319,127.84.
Investigators identified Aubrey and William using video surveillance footage obtained from Lowe's.
"I think these guys had gotten so comfortable in their, in what they were doing, and they continued to do it so much, sometimes multiple times a day," Jeffersontown Police Det. Mike Lauder said. "It was not uncommon for them to hit two to three Lowe's stores in one day.
On Wednesday, both men plead not guilty and their bonds are set at $250,000. Neither men are permitted to have any contact with Lowe's stores or employees.
Their next hearing in scheduled for Nov. 27.
If you have any information about the other three suspects you can call Jeffersontown Police at 267-0503.
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