Melody A. Breckenridge is an admitted criminal mastermind.
Breckenridge, 50, has confessed to stealing merchandise worth hundreds of thousands of dollars from the Target where she worked (8509 State Line Road). How did Breckenridge get that much stuff out of the store without anyone noticing? In plain sight.
The heists started with salvage items and moved to newer stock. It took a year and a half for anyone to notice.
Target estimated the shipping value of the salvage merchandise at $120,562.85 and valued the recovered stolen merch at $96,360.27.
Quite a haul, and she would have gotten away with it if it weren't for a nosy Target security guard who noticed that four hair straighteners had gone missing.
Larry Dunn, an executive of assets protection for Target,
rewound video footage to trace the straightener's disappearance. He
watched Breckenridge, a "receiving specialist," put the straightener
in an empty box and load the box and other items earmarked for Goodwill
onto an unfamiliar truck at the loading dock.
Thus began Dunn's investigation into Breckenridge. Dunn
reviewed surveillance tapes dating back to November 25, 2009. He
saw Breckenridge stack merchandise -- including vacuums, dog
food, paper products, toiletries, cleaning products and televisions --
onto several pallets and then load them onto vehicles in the
store's dock area.
Dunn also kept a close eye on Breckenridge while she worked. On January
27, he watched her load a shopping cart with women's clothing and
six cases of Ensure before flagging the items as defective in the
store's computer system. Breckenridge then boxed up paper products,
chemical products, two refrigerators, a keyboard, a microwave,
televisions, dog food, clothing and other electronics, loaded them onto
salvage pallets and clocked out at 1:30 p.m. Forty-five minutes after
she left, an unidentified man showed up at the receiving door and told
a Target employee that he was there for a pick up. The man was told
that Breckenridge had left for the day.
On January 28, Dunn continued watching Breckenridge -- and so did Kansas City police, who set up a perimeter outside the store. At
8:12 a.m., a U-Haul truck drove up to the dock of the store, and a man
contacted Breckenridge. Six minutes later, a woman in a van also
pulled into the dock area and met up with Breckenridge. The three of
them loaded the vehicles with the items Breckenridge had stacked up
the day before.
Police followed a 2005 Ford van to 9435 Valley Garden Road. A
search warrant was issued to search the van and home of 43-year-old Damon Davidson.
The search turned up paper products, cleaning products, clothes, toys, games, plastic tubs and household
products. Target employees later identified the items as merchandise
stolen from the store.
Davidson admitted receiving stolen Target merchandise from Breckenridge.
Police also followed the truck to the residence of Tim Barton at 574
Northwest Highway N in Blairstown, Missouri. There they found a semi
tractor trailer full of electronics, appliances, clothing, furniture,
food, tools, linens and more. Target employees also identified the
items as stolen.
A search of Breckenridge's home at 512 West 86th Street and her 2001
Saturn turned up cleaning supplies, bedding, clothing, plastic tubs,
toiletries, shoes, kitchen supplies, cat food and more -- all taken from
Target.
Jackson County prosecutors have charged Breckenridge and Davidson Tuesday with felony theft of more than $25,000.
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