A man who allegedly stole nearly $4,300 worth of items from the Hermiston Walmart by altering UPC codes over 22 visits to the store was arrested Wednesday, July 14, 2021.

HERMISTON — Hermiston police reported arresting a man Wednesday, July 14, for altering universal product codes to steal nearly $4,300 worth of items from the Hermiston Walmart

Jeremy Wells, 41, who police say is a transient, is facing preliminary charges of first-degree theft, first-degree forgery, first-degree criminal trespassing, violating probation and possessing a weapon as a convicted felon.

Police reported Wells changed UPCs on expensive Walmart items to pay a smaller amount 22 times between last April and June, allowing him to steal almost $4,300. He also had product codes from a separate attempted theft, according to Hermiston Police Chief Jason Edmiston.

Police also found a stun gun on Wells, who is a convicted felon, while arresting him. Well confessed to the thefts and was booked into the Umatilla County Jail, Pendleton, with a preliminary bail of $180,000.