Man accused of fraudulent return scheme targeting regional Walmart stores

Clarkston police officers arrested a 42-year-old Washington man who is accused of being involved in a fraudulent scheme to return stolen items at regional Walmart stores, allegedly making off with $2,000 to $3,000.

Police arrested Stephen C. Dickerson on Friday and booked him into the Asotin County Jail. Dickerson has an initial appearance scheduled for Jan. 8 in Asotin County Superior Court.

According to police reports, Dickerson had been fraudulently returning stolen items at Walmart stores in Spokane, Pullman and Clarkston. Loss-prevention employees from regional Walmart stores had warned the Clarkston branch to look out for Dickerson.

He was seen in the Clarkston store Friday and he walked up to the help desk. Dickerson allegedly performed the same scheme at each store by taking receipts from help desks, scanning them onto his phone, then tracking down the item in the store and bringing it up to the help desk to return in exchange for cash. Dickerson never purchased any items and was in the process of returning a skateboard and laundry detergent to the Clarkston store.

Police were called and they interviewed Dickerson. He allegedly admitted to defrauding multiple Walmart stores with the same method, totaling as much as $3,000. When he was arrested by officers, they found $403 in cash in his pocket. He told officers the money came from defrauding the Clarkston Walmart earlier.

Dickerson was booked on felony charges of second-degree organized retail theft, second-degree possession of stolen property and criminal conspiracy.

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Holm may be contacted at tholm@lmtribune.com or at (208) 848-2275. Follow him on Twitter @TomHolm4.