Natalie Ricci, 31, of Butler, PA.
A Butler woman is facing charges after she allegedly scammed a woman from Lansdale who was attempting to buy three iPhones off of Facebook Marketplace.
Natalie Ricci, 31, has been charged with one felony count of unlawful use of a computer, as well as misdemeanor counts of theft by deception and receiving stolen property, in connection with the four month investigation.
According to the criminal complaint, Lansdale Borough Police received a fraud complaint on Dec. 4, 2018, from a female victim who said she had attempted to buy three iPhones off of the Facebook Marketplace. The victim told police that she had agreed to send the seller—identified as Ricci—$500 via Venmo for the phones, and then another $500 after the phones were received.
Instead, Ricci deactivated her accounts after the first $500 was received, according to the report.
Detectives spent the next few months obtaining account information and executing search warrants on financial and social media accounts, which eventually enabled them to track down Ricci to the 300-block of Howard Street in Butler, PA. When contacted by police, Ricci reportedly denied any criminality and stated that she was a victim of online hacking, the complaint states.
Records uncovered throughout the investigation showed that Ricci has a criminal history in Florida and New Hampshire for DUI, drug possession and theft. The report also states that Ricci is currently wanted in Broward County, Florida, for a probation violation, and she had two recent incidents with the Butler Police Department, including her friend overdosing on heroin and a domestic incident with her mother regarding Ricci’s drug use.
Ricci was taken into custody and arraigned April 17 by Magisterial District Judge Albert Augustine, who set bail at $2,500 unsecured. She was then released from custody.
Her next court appearance is a preliminary hearing on May 8 at 1:30 p.m. in front of Magisterial District Judge Ed Levine.
(Editor's note: All suspects and defendants are innocent until proven guilty. Should the defendant choose to issue a public statement, or is later found not guilty or has the charges dropped, we will update this article accordingly.)
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