What did Ariel Foster do? Lasell University student charged in $1 million credit card scam

Ariel Foster, a Lasell University student, pleaded not guilty to stealing approximately $1 million in an alleged credit card scam on Friday, March 10, 2023.

Foster stole the money while working at Lovisa, a Burlington mall jewelry store. She was accused of stealing funds from several fake transactions before using the money to purchase Louis Vuitton merchandise, a trip to Hawaii, and a Tesla.

In an official statement, the Lasell University administration noted that they are going to carry out their own investigation.

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Ariel Foster's scam was discovered after another employee discovered some suspicious transactions

As per CBS, Ariel Foster stole the money over a three-day period, across more than eight transactions. Her supposed modus operandi was to scan an item, raise its price, then refund it to a credit card under its original price. She would then transfer the difference to herself via a credit card.

Burlington Police Chief Thomas Browne described what he believed the scheme to be and said that he believes that greed took over Foster. He noted that when he first saw the amount, he was surprised and thought that it was a mistake. The chief added:

"She would have an item in the store that she would mark up over-priced and then she would return the difference onto a credit card that she owned in her name."

Investigators also said that while carrying out the purported scams, Foster would tamper with the store cameras.

She came under investigators' radar after a night shift worker at Lovisa noticed Alice inside the store after her shift was over. Foster had initially come to the store to return her key. However, when the night shift employee went through the cash register, they noticed several suspicious transactions. The employee reported the incident to the Lovisa team, who subsequently called the authorities.

Yahoo reported that in the initial stages of the investigation, it was believed that Ariel Foster had stolen $547,187. However, as the probe developed, they began to suspect that she may have stolen almost twice that amount.

The police report stated that after she was confronted by officers, the student confessed. The student said that she took the money to help relieve her mother's stress and to make her friends and family happy. She also said that she felt underappreciated but was willing to take the blame, before she apologized for the scam.

Police Chief Thomas Brown said that the authorities are investigating the possibility that Foster may have had accomplices. He said that there was "no indication or belief" that Ariel didn't act alone.

Ariel Foster's attorney noted that the student is a college track star with no prior criminal record. She is currently out on $1000 bail.