Man sentenced in Sacramento for nationwide Target gift card scam

(FOX40.COM) — A man convicted in a nationwide Target gift card scam worth up to millions of dollars has been sentenced after being arrested during a Sacramento County sheriff's blitz in December , according to the Sacramento County District Attorney's Office.

The sentencing was handed down Tuesday against Ningning Sun after he was found to be a “runner” in an alleged organized crime ring that ran Target gift card scams across the West Coast, Midwest and Deep South .

Sun was arrested in December during a sting operation by the Sacramento County Sheriff's Office after he was seen at a Target taking gift cards from his person and putting them away while taking new cards -gifts.

After trying to flee law enforcement, Sun was arrested and some 200 gift cards “fell out of his clothes,” according to the prosecutor’s office.

Further investigation by law enforcement revealed that Sun's car contained several thousand Target gift cards stolen from stores throughout California.

“The cards were in bags labeled 'completed' and 'unfinished,'” the prosecutor said. “The cards in the 'finished' bag contained gift cards that had been tampered with and ready to be put aside so that money could be siphoned out of them once a customer purchased them. The cards in the “not complete” bags contained cards that had not yet been tampered with.

As the investigation progressed, records containing 140 names, telephone numbers and other information in Sun's possession were discovered, indicating that he worked for others.

Travel data from his car revealed that Sun had traveled to Target locations in Nevada, Arizona, Texas, Louisiana, Arkansas, Tennessee and Illinois.

Depending on the amount of money placed on the falsified gift cards still in use, the potential loss could range from $31,125 to $2,869,000, according to the prosecutor's office.

Sun was facing criminal charges for acting as an agent involved in an organized theft of retail products, attempted grand theft, receiving stolen property and illegal possession of an access card. He did not dispute all the accusations.

After sentencing, Sun will serve one year in the county jail, then serve two years and eight months under mandatory supervision.

Sun was also ordered by the court to stay away from all Targets and to pay restitution to Target in an amount to be determined.