HUNTSVILLE, ALA. — This is an official press release from the U.S. Department of Justice (Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI)), published as received.

HUNTSVILLE, Ala. – A member of “Noir’s Luxury Refunds” has been sentenced for participating in a fraud conspiracy, organized through the cloud-based messaging service Telegram, that targeted retailers across the country, announced Acting U.S. Attorney Catherine L. Crosby.   

U.S. District Judge Corey L. Maze sentenced Brian Nicklaus Buchanan, 30, of Clayton, North Carolina, to 12 months and one day in prison.  Buchanan previously pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit mail fraud and wire fraud.  

“Refund fraud is a billion-dollar problem plaguing American companies,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Catherine L. Crosby. “These sentences send a message to cybercriminals that you can’t hide behind your keyboard. Federal law enforcement will track you down, arrest you, and you will go to prison.”

“Global fraud is a billion-dollar enterprise fueling organized crime.  Retail refund schemes alone cost billions, and there is no such thing as a victimless crime,” said David R. Fitzgibbons, FBI Birmingham Special Agent in Charge. “Every fraudulent return, every exploited system, ultimately impacts jobs, prices, and public safety.  This case exemplifies the FBI’s unwavering commitment to safeguarding American companies and their customers.  Through strong global and private sector partnerships, we can disrupt and dismantle these networks at their core.”

The following members of “Noir’s Luxury Refunds” have previously been sentenced:

  • Jason Seib, also known as “Waynor,” 44, from Mississauga, Ontario, Canada, was sentenced to time served after being in custody for 26 months;
  • David James Park, also known as “Plutus,” 24, from Phoenix, Arizona, was sentenced to 13 months in prison;
  • Nicholas John Caruso, also known as “Deaf,” 33, from Dallas, Texas, was sentenced to 8 months in prison;
  • Jennifer Mireya Palma, also known as “Bianca,” 25, from Los Angeles, California, was sentenced to 10 months in prison;
  • Damion Wayne Scarlett, also known as “Dash,” 27, from Deer Park, New York, was sentenced to 16 months in prison;
  • CK Chikong Tran, also known as “Radiant,” 31, from New York, New York, was sentenced to 21 months in prison; and
  • Tyree Samuel Tinsley, also known as “Tysamtin,” 32, from Richmond, Virginia, was sentenced to 12 months and one day in prison.

According to court documents, these individuals were members of Noir’s Organization, a group that operated the Telegram channel “Noir’s Luxury Refunds,” as well as other fraud-based Telegram channels. Noir’s Luxury Refunds was dedicated to refund fraud, a type of fraud where a purchaser claims to return an item, receives a refund, but keeps the product. Customers would pay Noir’s Organization a percentage of the product price in exchange for the organization fraudulently refunding the item on the customer’s behalf. Noir’s Organization marketed itself as having the expertise to defraud retailers across the world in a wide range of industries. At one point, the Noir’s Luxury Refunds channel had over 5,900 followers. Noir’s Organization operated from July 2020 until July 2022.

Documents reflect that the group obtained refunds or attempted to obtain refunds for millions of dollars’ worth of products, including electronics, designer clothing and apparel, home furnishings, and appliances. Noir’s Organization used a variety of tactics to commit refund fraud, including social engineering to manipulate customer services representatives into issuing refunds, manipulating shipping labels to deceive a retailer into believing they had received a returned product when they had not, and recruiting customer service representatives as “insiders” to perform refunds on the conspiracy’s behalf. Noir’s Organization also developed malware that would target retailers’ websites to facilitate refund fraud by circumventing fraud prevention measures.

The FBI investigated the cases. Assistant U.S. Attorneys John M. Hundscheid and Brett A. Janich, and former Assistant U.S. Attorney Edward J. Canter, prosecuted the cases.

Assistance was provided by Target Corporation; Amazon.com, Inc.; Wal-Mart Stores, Inc.; Wayfair Inc.; Dell Technologies; Dick’s Sporting Goods, Inc.; American Airlines Group Inc.; Hewlett Packard Incorporated; Adidas AG; eBay Inc.; and Google’s CyberCrime Investigation Group. The Sûreté Nationale of Morrocco also provided valuable assistance to the investigation. 

This case was brought as part of Operation Chargeback, an FBI investigation into organized refund fraud groups across the United States and internationally. Cases have also been brought in the Western District of Washington and the Northern District of Oklahoma as part of the initiative.

For more resources on cybercrime, visit www.ic3.gov.