A couple admitted to stealing about $500,000 worth of high-end merchandise from Nordstrom in Minnetonka and selling them for cash, per police.
Denis V. Palamarchuk, 47, and his ex-wife Tanya V. Alysheva, of Plymouth each face one count of felony theft. If convicted, theft charge carries a sentence of up to 10 years in prison and/or a $20,000 fine.
The criminal complaint reports security cameras caught Palamarchuk taking pricey merchandise from the loading dock.
“[Palamarchuk] would leave early through the loading dock door instead of the designated employee door, which was against store policy. Defendant would then drive his vehicle to the loading dock door and was seen on camera departing with boxes that he placed in his car,” per court documents.
Palamarchuk was also seen packaging store times into a box in the business services office and placing the items into his car. Asset protection employees confronted Palamarchuk as he was leaving his car. “The total value of items in Defendant’s vehicle was $5,000,” per the complaint.
After the confrontation, Palamarchuk admitted to stealing about 20 items, according to documents.
Documents report the Nordstrom employee told officers he was stealing to pay bills because of pay decrease. Investigators found an eBay shipping receipt for Gucci boots shipped from a Plymouth address which was of Palamarchuk’s ex-wife, Tanya V. Alysheva.
The complaint says Alysheva admitted to helping Palamarchuk sell the items online for cash.
Officers executed search warrants at Alysheva’s residence and “found stolen an estimated $500,000 worth of items stolen from Nordstrom, $46,131 in cash, and multiple identification cards” in two different names.
The complaint says Alysheva told officers the names on the identification cards were her husband’s brothers “who have been out of the country for many years and defendants use credits cards in their names without their knowledge.”
Police say at the time of the arrest, the couple had more than 200 postings on their eBay account.
The stolen items are believe to be from Nordstrom at Ridgedale Center where both Palamarchuk and Alysheva were employed.
Pafoua Yang
Pafoua Yang is a reporter for Alpha News. She has worked as an on-air reporter for stations across the Twin Cities.
