Boston woman charged with stealing over $6,600 in merchandise from Sephora
BOSTON, March 11, 2024 – A Boston woman was ordered into custody after being arraigned last week in Central BMC for stealing $6,681 worth of merchandise from a Boston Sephora store over the course of two months, District Attorney Kevin Hayden announced.
KOURTNEY MCLEAN, 33, was charged with unarmed robbery for a September 2023 incident at the Sephora on 7 North Street. Judge Joseph Griffin revoked McLean’s bail on a pending larceny case for which she failed to appear in February, and set $1,000 bail on the new charge.
McLean was also charged with larceny over $1,200 by single scheme and trespassing for a July 2023 incident at the same location. Griffin set an additional $1,500 bail and ordered McLean to stay away from the store. McLean is due back in court on April 4 for both cases.
On July 19, 2023, Boston police responded to Sephora for a larceny in progress. Upon arrival, officers were informed by loss prevention personnel that a female, later identified as McLean, entered the store and stole $1,436 worth of perfumes. Loss prevention personnel said McLean was known to them because she had stolen numerous items the previous month and had been banned from the store.
Video surveillance from July 19 shows McLean, wearing a white Champion hat, head straight to the fragrance section and place 11 fragrance tester bottles inside a shoulder bag before fleeing the store. Officers searched the area but were not able to locate McLean. The stolen items were valued at $1,436.
A further review of store video surveillance showed McLean enter the store on two previous occasions. On July 11 at 6:53 p.m., McLean entered the store and placed nine fragrance testers worth $1,341 into a backpack.
On July 13, at 5:30 p.m., McLean entered the store and placed 17 fragrance testers worth $2429 into her bag in front of several customers. The total value of stolen merchandise in the three July incidents was $5,206.
At about 5:05 p.m. on September 25, 2023, Boston police responded to the same Sephora for another larceny. Officers reviewed video surveillance with loss prevention and observed a female, who they all recognized to be McLean, place 10 items inside a blue tote bag. McLean was also observed pushing a loss prevention officer out of the way before fleeing the store. The stolen merchandise was valued at $1,475.
The total value of stolen merchandise from the four incidents is $6,681.
“Retail theft does not affect just the retailer. It affects the entire community. When stores close because of rampant theft, or are forced to secure their items in locked compartments, consumers are directly impacted. We are working with retailers to make the shopping experience as safe as possible for shoppers and store employees. This incident involves a chronic offender afflicting repeated high-value losses on a business. The bail and conditions are appropriate for the offenses,” Hayden said.
All charged individuals are presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.
Suffolk County District Attorney Kevin Hayden’s office serves the communities of Boston, Chelsea, Revere, and Winthrop, Mass. The office handles over 20,000 cases a year. More than 160 attorneys in the office practice in nine district and municipal courts, Suffolk Superior Court, the Massachusetts Appeals Court, the Supreme Judicial Court, and the Boston Juvenile Courts. The office employs some 300 people and offers a wide range of services and programs to serve anyone who comes in contact with the criminal justice system. This office is committed to educating the public about the services we provide, our commitment to crime prevention, and our dedication to keeping the residents of Suffolk County safe.
James Borghesani, Chief of Communications