Refund Robber: A 19-Year-Old Lasell University Student Stole More Than Half A Million Dollars And Spent It On A Tesla, Lavish Hawaii Trip And Louis Vuitton

A 19-year-old Lasell University student reportedly scammed her way into obtaining over $500,000 while working at a jewelry store at a Burlington mall in Boston and went on quite a luxurious spending spree in February. She was arrested on Wednesday.

According to WCVB, Ariel Foster worked at the cash register in the jewelry store but did more than ring customers’ items. Foster’s scam consisted of ringing up items and increasing their prices, which then would be refunded to a credit card in her name. 

February had three transactions that showed Foster increased the prices. The refunds for eight transactions totaled $547,187.

“It was a situation of fraudulent returns where she would have an item she would mark up over price, and return the difference to a credit card in her name and then deposit to herself the money to different bank accounts,” Burlington police chief Thomas Browne explained.

On Feb. 22, police were informed about a credit card machine breach at the jewelry store Lovisa. During their investigation, they discovered that between Feb. 2 and Feb. 22, Foster bought a $35,000 red Tesla, a $6,000 Delta flight to Hawaii, and spent over $20,000 for a hotel room in Maui and $5,000 in Louis Vuitton.

Foster, a women’s track and field star sprinter, was arrested on March 8 in her dorm and hit with a larceny charge of over $1,200. 

In a statement, the University confirmed that they were aware of the student’s arrest.

“We are aware that a Lasell University student was arrested on Wednesday, March 8. The responsibility of all students to comply with local, state and federal laws applies both on- and off-campus,” the school said.

“If one of my children came home and said hey they have enough money to buy a Tesla while they’re trying to go to school, that’s certainly going to raise those flags for me,” Browne said.

Detectives aren’t confident if more money is involved and ruled that she acted alone.

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