Every time a coupon counterfeiter is charged and convicted, the industry tends to warn that the counterfeiters’ customers could be next. While that’s certainly true, it rarely, if ever, actually happens.
But this time, it has.
Five alleged customers of one of the most notorious coupon criminals in recent years have been arrested and charged with crimes that could put them behind bars for up to 20 years, and cost them millions in fines, forfeiture and restitution.
A federal court in Virginia has unsealed an indictment against five women from all over the country – 38-year-old Sherise Williams of Palmetto, Florida; 30-year-old Amber Teague of Louisville, Kentucky; 37-year-old Jennifer Snyder of Lavon, Texas; 40-year-old Melissa Apodaca of Thornton, Colorado; and 55-year-old Cindi Swindle of Jacksonville, Florida.
From approximately April 2017 through May 2020, the indictment alleges the five “were all top purchasers of fraudulent coupons” from Lori Ann Talens, who is currently serving a 12-year prison term for creating and selling tens of millions of dollars worth of counterfeit coupons . The defendants “knowingly purchased thousands of dollars of these counterfeit coupons from Lori Ann Talens and used them to defraud businesses and enrich themselves,” the indictment reads.