POLK COUNTY, Fla. – Four different vendors at a flea market in Auburndale were selling “jail broken” Amazon Fire Sticks that allowed consumers to get TV shows and movies for free, according to the Polk County Sheriff’s Office.
Deputies said they received complaints about the devices being sold at International Market World Flea Market and went undercover to investigate.
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When a device is “jail broken,” plugins and software are added so that the user can access digital content such as TV shows and movies without having to pay the usual fees.
Undercover detectives went to four different vendors and purchased “jail broken” Fire Sticks for anywhere from $80 to $107 and in most cases, received a tutorial on how to use the devices.
Records show four arrests were made: Lorinda Marlene Holm, 71; Bongwoo Roe, 88; Luis Gabriel Vazquez, 34; and Grace Yarbrough, 59. All four suspects were from Lakeland and Roe was the only one who was not “jail breaking” the devices on his own, according to a news release.
They’re each facing charges of advertising to promote the sale of an intercept device.
“Just as retail crime affects the consumer by driving up the cost of goods, stealing content from internet streaming companies drives up the cost of those services, negatively impacting the consumer’s wallet. Consumers beware, there really is not an honest way to get something for nothing,” Polk County Sheriff Grady Judd said.