Crime Fix with Angenette Levy - Florida TikToker Arrested By Cops For Stealing From Target

Episode Date: June 15, 2025

Marlena Velez was arrested twice in late 2024 for stealing from a Target store in Cape Coral, Florida. Police went to Velez’s home in November 2024 after 7 a.m. and put her in handcuffs. Body-worn cameras recorded an officer questioning Velez about her Target trip which was recorded by a store surveillance camera. Law&Crime’s Angenette Levy goes through the footage in this episode of Crime Fix — a daily show covering the biggest stories in crime.PLEASE SUPPORT THE SHOW: If your child, under 21, has been diagnosed with type 2 diabetes or fatty liver disease, visit https://forthepeople.com/food to start a claim now! Host:Angenette Levy  https://twitter.com/Angenette5Producer:Jordan ChaconCRIME FIX PRODUCTION:Head of Social Media, YouTube - Bobby SzokeSocial Media Management - Vanessa BeinVideo Editing - Daniel CamachoGuest Booking - Alyssa Fisher & Diane KayeSTAY UP-TO-DATE WITH THE LAW&CRIME NETWORK:Watch Law&Crime Network on YouTubeTV: https://bit.ly/3td2e3yWhere To Watch Law&Crime Network: https://bit.ly/3akxLK5Sign Up For Law&Crime's Daily Newsletter: https://bit.ly/LawandCrimeNewsletterRead Fascinating Articles From Law&Crime Network: https://bit.ly/3td2IqoLAW&CRIME NETWORK SOCIAL MEDIA:Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lawandcrime/Twitter: https://twitter.com/LawCrimeNetworkFacebook: https://www.facebook.com/lawandcrimeTwitch: https://www.twitch.tv/lawandcrimenetworkTikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@lawandcrimeSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Wondery Plus subscribers can binge all episodes of this law and crimes series ad-free right now. Join Wondery Plus in the Wondery app, Apple Podcasts, or Spotify. I'm going to need you to put your hands behind your back. Wait, what? Put your hands behind your back. Wait, me? Don't fight it.

Don't fight it. Don't fight it. That was TikToker Marlena Velez during one of her arrests for stealing from a Target store. Now I have footage no one has seen until now of another one of her arrests for stealing from a Target store. Now I have footage no one has seen until now of another one of her arrests and what she had to say. I'm gonna be real with you, okay? So there's security video footage of you

stealing from Target. -♪ Welcome to Crime Fix. I'm Anjanette Levy. Marlena Velez is a TikToker with a pretty decent following on the app. She talks about her beauty regimen and the products she uses and even posts videos of herself with her family and just doing things around the house. But last fall, Marlena got into some hot water with the cops for stealing from Target and how she did it. Officers with the Cape Coral Police Department went to Marlena got into some hot water with the cops for stealing from Target and how she did it. Officers with the Cape Coral Police Department went to Marlena Velez's house on November

21st after they got a call from Target. Hey, just run this tag real quick when you come up. Loss prevention officers at Target had noticed Marlena Velez doing something fishy on security cameras at the self-checkout, so the officers waited to talk to her. Hello, Gaincourt Police. I'm Marlena. Do you have a second? Yes, can I just put a jacket on?

Absolutely, go ahead. Okay. As soon as she comes out with the jacket I'm gonna go get her. She answered the door she's just getting a jacket. No, I mean, no. She comes up. The officers had a game plan and you can actually hear Marlena Velez in her home on the phone on another officer's body camera.

Hello, Nera. Can you come to the house now please? I need you. I need you to stay with the kids because I'm not going to be able to do that. I'm going to be able to do that. I'm going to be able to do that. I'm going to be able to do that. I'm going to be able to do that. I'm going to be able to do that. I'm going to be able to do that. I'm going to be able to do that. Nara, can you come to the house now please? I need you. I need you to stay with the kids because I'm getting arrested right now.

I don't know why this has changed. I've been, uh, murmuring. But I need you to come stay with them, please. But I need you to come stay with them, please. I don't have anyone else to call. I don't have Jesus parents. The only one I know I can trust is you. Hannah, I don't know, but the only person I can call right now is you. You cannot call anyone else. I don't know what I would have the only person I can call right now is you like but like you cannot call anyone else. They can just leave you and they can leave you. Are you going to be on your way now?

Okay, dude. All right, don't call anyone else. So Marlena Velez comes out of her house to talk. Hi, are you able to talk? Are you the only one home? No, my kids are home. Okay, is anybody else home? No, it's just my kids. Okay, do you mind if you talk to us real quick?

Sure. So, I want to talk to you about a certain incident, okay? But before I do that, I'm going to ask you to turn around, okay? Put your hands behind your back, okay? Okay, you're on one ball by two. I will figure out and arrange that for your kids. This is a law and crime legal alert. Did you know that children are being diagnosed with serious conditions like type 2 diabetes

and non-alcoholic fatty liver disease? And research is potentially linking ultra-processed foods to these outcomes. Morgan & Morgan is stepping in to fight to hold food companies accountable. With decades of experience fighting large corporations, they are ready to stand up for families who deserve justice. If your child under 21 has been diagnosed with type 2 diabetes or fatty liver disease, visit www.forthepeople.com slash food or scan the QR code on your screen to learn more. Here's another view of Marlena coming out of the house. I'm going to warm her up. You don't have anything on you, right? I need to pick up a few of these pockets.

Stand here, face the door. You don't have to press your feet. I'm just going to pat you down with the back of my hand, right? Make sure you don't have any luck in here. I'm gonna open the door so you can get air conditioner. Now back to that first body camera angle with the arresting officer. Can I just call my boyfriend? Yeah, you can. You can.

Okay. So we'll give you that opportunity, alright? Can I change? No, not right now. Why is this locked? Throw your sword. Like, I'm literally freezing, like I'm not allowed to change. I understand that.

No. I'm not allowed to change. I'm not allowed to change. I'm not allowed to change. I'm not allowed to change. I, I'm literally freezing like I'm not allowed to change. I understand that. No. Like my kids are literally babies. I understand that. I saw them in the security video footage. What security video footage?

So here's that footage the officer was referring to. It's from a Target. And it shows Marlena Velez walking into the Cape Coral Target last fall with her significant other and her children. They shop and then they make their way to that self-checkout with a cart full of stuff, the kids in tow. Then Marlena starts scanning. At first, it's a pair of slippers and other items. Then she grabs some children's clothing. But look closely, very closely. Velez is not scanning the tag for the clothing. She has another tag in her hand, and she's scanning that tag instead of the tag for the clothes. Then she does it again for other

household items, scanning one item but not the others. Then she does it again for other household items, scanning one item but not the others. And then take a look at this. She actually doesn't even scan items. Here she takes clothes directly from the cart and puts them in the bag. So this is what led Target Loss Prevention to contact Cape Coral Police.

Now back to the body worn camera footage from November 21st. Wait for her to come here, but we'll walk to my car in the meantime. Now back to the body worn camera footage from November 21st. Wait, can we like wait inside I'm cold or am I gonna be in the car? No, you're gonna be in my car. It'll be warmer in there. You don't have anything on you right? I know you just woke up, but do you have anything in pockets or anything like that? No, I wish I would be able to change, though. Okay, we're gonna go on the other side. I'm just going to pat you down with the back of my hand, alright? Make sure you don't have any weapons or anything here. I'm going to open the door so you can get air conditioning. Well not air conditioning, but like, you know, not the heater, but just constant air.

Then the arresting officers discuss whether another arrest will be made before trying to talk to Marlena Velez. Does Nick Jones got charges as well? I'm gonna call him. Give him the opportunity to, if he has found probable cause, but I don't know if he's found pieces for his. Okay. I mean it's just a video you're doing under him? I don't know. I don't know what I do. I'm not here clicking this card behind his back. Alright, I'm just gonna read you something, okay? You just listen. If you want to talk to me after, that's fine. You have the right to remain silent. Anything you say can be used against you in court.

You have the right to talk to a lawyer for advice before we ask you any questions and to have them with you during questioning If you cannot afford a lawyer one will be appointed for you before any questioning if you wish If you decide to answer questions without a lawyer present, you will still have the right to stop answering at any time You also have the right to stop answering at any time until you talk to a lawyer Do you understand each of these rights I've explained to you? I need a verbal Yes, with these prights in mind you wish to speak to me each of these rights I've explained to you. I need a verbal. Yes. Yes. With these rights in mind, do you wish to speak to me? Yes. Okay.

Do you know why we're here? No. Just asked you that earlier. Okay. I know you had said something. You thought it was something to do with Walmart. On the phone. Yeah. Okay. Why do you think that? I don't know, you said something

about security camera footage. Okay. And I remember I was only at Walmart yesterday, so. Gotcha. All right, well, do you shop at Target often? Walmart. Walmart? Not Target?

I do shop at Target. Okay. Do you remember an incident in October? Okay. I don't remember the exact dates that I go. Okay, that's fine. So I'm gonna be real with you, okay? So there's security video footage of you stealing from Target. Okay? You go to... What? Teller?

Yeah, tell me if it, you know, if I have it wrong or what. Or correct me if I have a... if you have a different point of view. You go to a self-checkout. You have a separate little barcode scanner You scan multiple times rings up for a dollar and then you take the merchandise Past the scanner and put everything in a bag. You do that multiple times to multiple items And then you put it in the cart that has your two kids in it so I was just wondering kind of what was going through your head at that point.

In October? Yeah. So at this point, Marlena Velez has waived her right to an attorney and she has agreed to speak to the officer. And what's interesting about her bringing up Walmart, she was actually arrested in 2023 and plated no contest to doing the exact same thing under ringing items at a self-checkout. Now she doesn't seem to remember doing it during the shopping trip to Target.

You don't remember doing that? Okay. All right. I mean it's fine that you don't remember but it happened. It's on video. Um, that's submitted into our evidence department. Okay. So that's what you're being arrested for is theft. All right. So we're going to head down to the Lee County jail based off of that. Do you have any questions or do you have any comments? Good. I'm here. I need to call my boyfriend. I just don't have his number. Okay, how do we get his number?

The only number. It's on my phone. Okay, well I'm bringing your phone to the jail. Once we get to the jail, there's a booking process so I have to do some paperwork, right? Once I finish my paperwork, I hand you over to the Lee County Sheriff's Office deputies intake they grab you they get the phones out the numbers out of your phone okay so that at that point is when you'll get the number for your boyfriend and you'll be able to call him once I transfer custody to for the jail okay okay and then what after that's up to you and the judge you have to speak to the judge

No, either I don't know you might make it in time for first appearance You might not that's depending on the whole booking process, okay But if you do you might speak to them this morning, or if not, you'll speak to them tomorrow morning Correct, so like what does that mean? What do you mean? You'll be held in the jail until you are able to speak to the judge. What? Even? Like... That's what happens when you steal, you know what I mean?

There might be a second appearance at 11, but I'm not sure. Yeah, there might. Like I said, the benefit to you right now is that it's really early and that they haven't even opened yet, so. Marlene Velez is clearly not happy about the possibility of spending the night in jail. If we're able to- How long does it take? What, this whole process, me doing the paperwork and stuff

and getting you into the jail? Well, since we do have to wait for whoever you called to come and watch the kids, hopefully it's 7.30 right now. If I can knock out the paperwork and there's no line at the jail, it's probably going to take us what? With morning traffic, 30 minutes to get to the jail. It's downtown Fort Myers.

So that's at 8 o'clock maybe 1030 okay and like I said I'll try and do my best I don't want to be in the jail as much as you know how much it was a target we know how much it's a it's a misdemeanor charge so I would just be careful because there are other cases open. Okay, you didn't just steal from this target on this particular day. You also did it multiple other times.

Okay, so there may be other charges pending. Okay, but right now me and my I'm investigating a certain case. I have found probable cause to make an arrest for my case. There are other cases right now that are being investigated I'm just giving you that heads up So right now you have a misdemeanor charge with me, but you may have a felony down the road Just letting you know There's other ones open like what does that mean there may be I don't know. So there's other ones open?

Like what does that mean? There may be. I don't know. I'm not saying that you're... I'm just saying how there may be. I only go to one target. Well, that's, that's not true. You know, because we have you on security video footage at others.

Okay. What others? I don't know specifics about other cases. All I know is this case is my case. And like I said, I found probable cause to make an arrest, okay? Do you have any other questions or comments? Will I be able to talk to my grandma before she goes? Yeah, I'll let her talk to you.

Do you feel comfortable with it it's your grandma you said? Yeah. Coming here and watching over the kids? Yeah. Okay. No, she watches them all the time. Okay. I just want to make sure that if we take you to jail,

that you're giving her the caretaker custody of your kids in the meantime. Oh no, yeah, she watches them all the time. Okay, good. Do you happen to have your ID in the house? I don't know about you, but Marlena Velez seems annoyed and inconvenienced, at least to me as I watch this. Look, no one wants to be awakened early in the morning like this, but the cops tell her they have her dead to rights and she has done this before. Jail's going to ask because they usually like an ID.

So what's your first name. Spell it for me. M-A-R... L-E... N-A. Do you have a middle name? Um... Lin...

L-Y-N. Okay, and your last name? Vlez. V-E... L-E... Z. Is this your primary residence here? Yeah. Alright. Where were you born?

What city, state? New York. New York? Yeah. New York, New York? Yes. Are you employed? No.

Let's see, I'm just trying to think, because there's other questions I just got to ask you about demographics and stuff, but I may ask you later because I have to pull it up. I'm just trying to see if I remember everything. That'll be all for now. Any other questions, comments, concerns that I can answer for you? Just trying to be real with you, that's all. No badges, no tube on. Okay, that's fine. I'll close the door now, okay? The interesting part about this is that Marlena

Velez says she is not employed. I was under the impression that she worked as an influencer on TikTok making decent money. But after her arrest, Marlena Velez claimed she had no income and asked the court and was given a public defender she listed her income as zero. That right there shows you that things on social media are definitely not what they seem. Now back to the video where officers collect Marlana's phone. I guess if she chooses the same thing I'll build her a car get so I don't know. Yeah she's just claiming I mean I read her she was willing to talk but she's claiming she doesn't remember.

No, we just don't show her pictures. It's alright. No, I mean she don't tell us why. I want that. Dad, do I have to go home? No, I don't need to come. I was just gonna, I don't want to tell her about the investigation. No, 100% they didn't.

Because I don't want her to go home and delete everything. No, no, yeah, 100%. 100% I agree with you. So. Just left it at that. And it was easier to identify her, you know what I mean? Oh, absolutely. As soon as she opened the door.

And then she just gave me her. She said it's that blue flip top? It's crazy. Yep. All right. Yeah, I'll see you. The investigating officer walks to the house where another officer is keeping an eye on All right. Yeah, thank you. The investigating officer walks to the house where another officer is keeping an eye on

Valais' young children. Just wait on the ground all the way here. Okay. With you. The one-year-old sleeping in her bed. Okay. Just hang around. I told him his mom said he would pick up his dad so that's why we're here.

I told him that his mom has to go pick up his dad so that's why we're here. Yes, yes, we're here just to watch. Okay. I'll just be outside working on the beans. What are you growing there? I'll just be outside working on the beans. Red Miranda, I don't know anything. What is your grandma drive? It's a white car.

Okay. So it's not a car? Yeah, it's a Chevy. Okay. Just making sure. Is it the end of the road? No. car. Okay. Yeah, it's a Chevy. Okay. Making sure. Sit them right there. I'm gonna get working. Everything's good. Thank you. Of course.

Yes, sir. I'm gonna work on the UBS. We're just waiting for her grandma to come. I'm gonna let her speak to grandma and then take custody of the kids. Then I'll head out but I'll work on the UBS. Yeah, yeah, yeah. Get on that so you don't take on that. You'll be good enough already to ride as long as you get out of here. Oh, you know the traffic. Yeah. Especially on that bridge.

Then Marlena Velez's grandmother shows up to care for the children and the conversation is recorded. So what happened? You know, he said something at Target or some type of a scan. Target or Walmart? Which one? He said Target. Well, you better figure it out. I have to I have to quote because I had to cancer my doctor's appointment. Okay? I'll text you and tell him. Yes, but don't call anyone else.

I won't, I won't, I won't. Wait! Yeah. Don't call anyone else. I'll tell him, but don't call anyone else. I'm going to call him. Anastasia's not going to free-kate today, right? I can take her. Oh, no. I'm not going to do that because then I have to get Papa's up.

I say I have to. OK, she gets canceled today. All right. Love you. Love you, too. Remember what I said. Don't worry. Don't worry.

I got it. OK, thank you, officer. Of course. Just real quick, ma'am, I'm it. Thank you, officer. Of course. Just real quick, ma'am, I'm gonna... Do you have your driver's license with you? Yes. Because I have to document who the kids were left in the city. Yes, yes, yes.

Yeah, I'm the great grandma. She's my grandma. Why they get into this? These young kids nowadays. Yeah, she's in a little bit of trouble. Why three police cars? I'm sorry to ask that. Oh no, just we were, this is the beginning of our shift. Then Marlena Velez and the arresting officer make their way to the jail

where he explains again what will happen when she gets there after you see the judge. They'll the judge will be the one that either issues you a bond. They'll release you or if they feel that you might be a flight risk, like you're gonna flee or something like that.

But if they don't feel that way, you'll probably be released on bond or something like that. Marlena Velez was booked into the jail on a petty theft charge and released after posting bail. She released a statement, while there will be a time to discuss my wrongings now is not that moment. And it doesn't mean I don't want to speak on it or take accountability for my actions. It means everything is still being dealt with in the court. So I just ask to please respect that.

I also want to be clear that this doesn't define who I am and it doesn't reflect the person I strive to be. Nine days after Marlena Velez's first arrest, police picked her up again after they said she'd been identified for a second target incident. I'm gonna need you to put your hands behind your back. Wait, what? Put your hands behind your back. Wait, see!

Don't bite it, don't bite it. I have to put shoes on. Hold on, I will talk to you in a second, all right? Just give us a second, just give us a second. Bro, this is what I told you. Call, call, um, Sydney. Call, call my dad, call my grandma, tell him to call my lawyer now. Nothing, nothing illegal. Take a seat, we'll have a female officer here in a second. Do you want me to stay with her? Yeah, stay with her.

After her arrest, I spoke with a Cape Coral police spokesperson about the case. And so Lisa, you guys get this call and the woman is accused of scanning barcodes that are for cheaper items. That is still a theft, you know, of items, even though she paid a lesser amount. And the difference was about $500. Yeah, that's right. So essentially our officers were able to determine, along with the loss prevention officers at the Target,

that this woman was scanning false barcodes for cheaper items instead of paying the full price for the items that she was actually purchasing. Marlena Velez resolved her petty theft cases by entering a no contest plea to the misdemeanor charges she faced. She's barred from entering any Target stores. Velez will be on probation until March of 2026.

And just to let you know, I reached out to her for a comment. At the time of this recording, I had not yet heard back from her. And that's it for this episode of Crime Fix. I'm Anjana Levy. Thanks so much for being with me. I'll see you back here next time.