Nike employees and resellers indicted for multi-million-dollar sneaker theft scheme
Federal prosecutors have charged a network of Nike insiders and sneaker resellers with conspiring to steal at least $2 million in shoes between 2021 and 2024.
A federal case unsealed this week accuses a group of Nike employees and sneaker-resale operators of conspiring to steal more than $2 million worth of limited-edition shoes from 2021 to 2024. Detectives traced “ghost-labeled” packages from a Memphis warehouse to residences in Hollywood, inserting GPS trackers that captured the handoff to a broker who coordinated with a Memphis supervisor. The broker, Roy Lee Harvey, allegedly directed the thefts based on demand from resellers, while a former CoolKicks co-owner, Bereket Abraham, is also named in the indictment.
The scheme involved at least 28 mislabeled boxes containing coveted models such as Nike Dunk Low Off-Whites. Authorities previously seized about $500,000 of stolen goods during a warehouse raid. Harvey has entered a not-guilty plea; other defendants have not yet responded.
Why it matters
The case highlights vulnerabilities in supply-chain security and the growing illicit market for high-value sneakers.
In this story