Maine man gets 33 months for 'ticket switching' scam

BANGOR, Maine - A Madison man was sentenced Wednesday for wire fraud and attempted wire fraud.

U.S. District Judge John A. Woodcock, Jr. sentenced Aaron Hoster, 51, to 33 months imprisonment followed by three years of supervised release. He was also ordered to pay $57,593.19 in restitution. Hoster pleaded guilty on Sept. 11.

According to court records, from June 2021 to April 2023, Hoster removed UPC labels from low-cost items and applied them to higher-priced items which he then purchased. Hoster defrauded multiple Home Depot and Lowe's Home Improvement stores in Maine, cheating the retailers out of more than $51,000.

In one instance, Hoster purchased a $439 cordless finish nailer kit, paying just $19.98 by scanning a price code for trimmer line. In another example, he scanned a code for an $11.36 chrome-plated plastic tailpiece despite purchasing a powered drain cleaner valued at $429. In all, Hoster, who has 29 prior criminal convictions, committed 160 thefts using his "ticket switching" scam. Most of thefts occurred in Maine, and additional thefts took place in Maryland and Pennsylvania.

In sentencing Hoster, Judge Woodcock stated, "The defendant had a full-time job of stealing for two years. You are causing the price of all goods to rise because people like you take what they haven't paid for. There were plenty of times you could have stopped but didn't because it was easy money."

Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) investigated this case.