Norwood Police: 2 arrested after Food Lion fraudulent activity

Published 9:11 am Friday, October 6, 2023

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Norwood Police Department announced Thursday it had arrested a pair of Michigan individuals for allegedly defrauding several Food Lions.

Around 1 p.m. Sept. 28 Norwood officers responded to the Food Lion on Fork Road in reference to two males conspiring to fraudulently obtain funds on gift cards, Norwood Police stated in a Facebook post.

The two males were unsuccessful due to management at Food Lion and left in a white van. Norwood Police officers quickly stopped the van on U.S. Highway 52. Once stopped officers began their investigation.

The males were identified as Marques Pitts, 25, and Christopher Watson, 24, both from Flint, Michigan.

Earlier in the day Stanly County Sheriff’s Office responded to the Food Lion in Richfield where the same two males were successful at fraudulently obtaining funds on gift cards, Norwood Police stated.

During the stop, a search of the van resulted in officers locating more transaction receipts. Officers called these Food Lions and local law enforcement agencies and determined Pitts and Watson fraudulently obtained around $45,000 funds from Food Lions in North Carolina alone, police said.

Food Lion confirmed these two have conducted this in numerous states as well, police said. The total amount stolen is yet to be determined.

Besides Stanly County, Anson County Sheriff’s Office assisted on the stop.

Pitts and Watson were placed in Stanly County Jail under a $500,000 bond, along with Wake and Guilford counties issuing their own warrants.