Two men from out of town are facing identity theft charges in Johnson County.
The scheme targeted the AT&T store on Shawnee Mission Parkway near Quivira Road.
Law enforcement said Frankie Arias, 24, from Bronx, New York, walked in and tried to buy two iPhones using another person's identification. Alert store employees called Shawnee police.
Then a few hours later, a man from Chicago attempted to purchase four iPhones using a fake driver's license, according to Maj. Dan Tennis with Shawnee Police Department.
Officers also took the second man, Jeremy Jackson, to the Johnson County jail.
"Phones can be worth double the prices overseas," Christina McIntosh, owner of SetCell in Westport, said.
McIntosh tells 41 Action News what the suspects allegedly did Wednesday afternoon is just one way they can get their hands on phones. Those phones can then be sold to unsuspecting victims for a quick buck.
"They shut down their accounts, they have a balance, they blacklist it -- the phones -- and essentially you can't ever use the phones, they're paperweight," McIntosh said.
This is now the second time in three months that out-of-town identity theft suspects have reportedly struck in Johnson County. Last December, Overland Park police arrested four New Yorkers who law enforcement say tried to use a trove of fake documents to buy iPhones at an AT&T store near 135th and Lamar.
Regarding the recent incident, AT&T declined to comment on specifics.
"We take these cases very seriously, and we’re cooperating with law enforcement," Chris Lester, an AT&T spokesman, wrote in a statement.
Arias made his first court appearance in front of Judge T. Kelly Ryan on Thursday afternoon. Arias is being held on $10,000 bond.
Jackson made his first court appearance on Friday afternoon.
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Andres Gutierrez can be reached at andres.gutierrez@kshb.com.
