A TIKTOK influencer has been arrested for allegedly stealing over $500 worth of items from Target.
Marlena Velez, who has over 300,000 followers on the social media platform, was arrested by police in Cape Coral, Florida, after cops were able to identify her with the help of her own TikTok videos.
Target‘s loss prevention staff informed Cape Coral police that on October 30, a young woman entered the location and stole 16 items at self-checkout by ticket switching, or scanning false barcodes with lower prices.
The stolen items, which included household goods and clothing, were valued at $500.32, police said.
Cape Coral police shared a photo of the suspect on its social media platforms, showing the woman with long black hair wearing a tan T-shirt, tan pants, and glasses.
An anonymous caller contacted police and identified that woman as Velez, 22, telling investigators that they followed her on Instagram.
Velez’s Instagram profile had a link to her TikTok page.
Her TikTok account consists of get-ready-with-me content and family-orientated vlogs.
Authorities combed through Velez’s TikTok account and found a video of herself getting ready, wearing the same tan outfit with glasses and a similar hairstyle, and heading to Target on October 30.
Velez, a mother of two, also documented herself picking out items inside the store and placing them in the trunk of her vehicle.
“She essentially incriminated herself,” a Cape Coral spokesperson told The Express Tribune.
“Social media gave us an unexpected lead, which expedited her identification and subsequent arrest.”
Velez was charged with petty theft and booked into the Lee County jail.
“Influencers should face the same consequences as anyone else. Their public image doesn’t exempt them from the law,” said the police spokesperson.
TROUBLED TIKTOKER
Velez was previously arrested in 2019 on charges of grand theft auto, the outlet reported.
Amanda Santana told The Express Tribune in high school, Velez stole her car and crashed it.
“She had a class with me at Ida Baker High School. I trusted her so much that I handed over my car keys,” Santana said.
“But that trust was destroyed when she disappeared with my car and later crashed it into a ditch near a Dunkin’.
“It’s like she never felt any remorse,” she added, saying Velez never paid for the damages to her vehicle.
In July 2023, the troubled TikToker was arrested again for shoplifting at a Walmart in Cape Coral.
Velez was captured on surveillance footage under-ringing items at self-checkout, stealing about $63 in kitchen goods.
She pleaded no contest to the charges in April 2024, according to The Express Tribune.
“She’s been living recklessly, flaunting a lifestyle that doesn’t match her actions,” Santana added.
