Steal And Sell Duo Busted

Two Marshall Field's window dressers have been arrested and charged with looting the upscale department store of thousands of dollars in merchandise and selling the goods online.

Dominic Morris, 30, and Collin DeBose, 29, both of Chicago, were arrested on Thursday after Morris accepted delivery at his home of $39,000 worth of stolen merchandise, Cook County sheriff's spokeswoman Penny Mateck said.

The merchandise had been shipped to the home on the store's private shipping account.

Investigators said they discovered more than $2 million in merchandise stolen from the store in the men's home, their workstations at the store and at an art studio. The items included several animal-shaped purses, shirts valued at nearly $900 and coats valued at $6,500.

During the past year, sweaters worth $1,500, men's suits valued at $3,000 and a dog-shaped purse valued at $5,000 were stolen from Marshall Field's main store in Chicago, she said.

Authorities, who acted on a tip, did not give the total value of the items sold on eBay. The two men may face federal charges if the merchandise was sold across state lines, Mateck said.

Kevin Pursglove, a spokesman for eBay, said the company's fraud investigation team was contacted by Cook County authorities on Tuesday and has been cooperating in the probe.

Whether the people who purchased the items will be required to return them will be up to Cook County authorities, Pursglove said.

"The transactions (on eBay) are between private individuals," he said. "We don't receive, inspect, or appraise the merchandise."

By Herbert G. McCann