Prolific New England Lightbulb Thief Pleads Guilty: Feds

NATICK, MA — Two days after Christmas in 2018, an employee at the Home Depot in Natick watched a man pull several pricey Philips Hue brand lightbulbs out of their boxes, put them in his pocket and walk out of the Speen Street store.

The employee called police to report the theft. Natick officers were on scene almost immediately, and confronted Justin Farinato as he exited the store. Farinato took off running, but was tackled and arrested by a Natick officer, according to court records.

It was no routine shoplifting incident. Farinato visited the Natick store that day as part of a long-running, New England-wide lightbulb theft racket, according to federal prosecutors. Between 2014 and 2019, Farinato stole thousands of "smart" lightbulbs, thermostats and other home products, and then sold them to a Salem-based eBay store.

He earned almost $400,000 reselling the stolen goods, according to prosecutors. He was arrested in July.

The thefts occurred at Home Depot stores across the region, including in Plainstow and Londonderry, N.H., stores, according to prosecutors. Farinato was so prolific, Home Depot loss prevention officers started their own investigation, following him to the eBay reseller and to his Danvers bank, according to court documents. There were 25 different thefts in 2018 alone, according to court records.

Farinato, 39, of Groveland, told the Salem eBay store owner that he bought the items at a discount from home stores after the items had been returned. The store owner told the feds that 99.5 percent of the smart light bulbs, batteries and thermostats he sold on eBay were purchased from Farinato.

Last week, Farinato agreed to plead guilty to charges of tax evasion and interstate transportation of stolen goods. He could serve up to 15 years in federal prison on the charges, although his plea agreement may mean a much reduced sentence, according to court documents.

The plea agreement also spells out that Farinato will have to give back the $397,160.30 he earned from selling the lightbulbs, according to court documents.