Dad-daughter duo raked in millions selling items stolen from Target and CVS, feds say

Tanasia Kenney
·2 min read

The father and daughter duo behind “a well-organized criminal enterprise” pocketed millions of dollars selling shoplifted items from big box retailers including Target, CVS, Kroger and other stores across Georgia, federal prosecutors say.

Robert “Mr. Bob” Whitley, 70, of Atlanta pleaded guilty Thursday to one count of interstate transportation of stolen property, and his daughter Noni Whitley, 46, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit interstate transportation of stolen property, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for Georgia’s northern district.

Between 2011 and 2019, prosecutors said the Whitleys sold over $5 million worth of stolen goods via their online businesses Closeout Express and Essential Daily Discounts. The pair hired “professional boosters” to steal over-the-counter medications, toiletries and other personal care items, which were then resold below wholesale price.

The “boosters” were paid in cash after hauling what they plundered from stores including Target, CVS, Kroger, Publix and Walgreens to a Whitley-owned warehouse in southwest Atlanta, according to prosecutors.

That warehouse and several residences connected to the dad-daughter duo were raided by federal agents in November 2019.

“This is retail theft on a massive scale,” Acting U.S. Attorney Kurt R. Erskine said in a statement. “We will continue to work with retailers and manufacturers to combat organized retail crime that is made easier and more lucrative by the ease by which stolen product can be sold online.”

The shoplifted goods were mainly sold on the Closeout Express website, or via “online storefronts” such as Amazon Marketplace, or other e-commerce sites that allow third-party retailers to sell new and used items. Court documents show Robert and Noni Whitley raked in $3.5 million in sales from Amazon Marketplace alone.

Prosecutors said the pair also sold “hundreds of thousands of dollars” in stolen goods via Essential Daily Discounts.

“It was further part of the conspiracy that a residential property owned by [Robert] Whitley ... in East Point, Georgia, was used to sort, store, and clean the stolen retail product,” federal prosecutors wrote.

Under the National Stolen Property Act of 1934, knowingly trafficking stolen goods valued at $5,000 or more is a crime punishable by a fine or up to 10 years in prison.

Robert and Noni Whitley are scheduled to be sentenced July 28, prosecutors said.

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