Fairfax Cop Hid Barcode At Target In Uniform – Then Hit A Second Target, Police Say

A 23-year police veteran hid a barcode at a Target self-checkout while in uniform and on duty — then hit a second Target five hours later, police say. His exit? Retirement, not termination.

Master Police Officer Scott Abram, 44, of the Fairfax County Police Department’s School Resource Officer Unit was charged October 8 with two counts of misdemeanor shoplifting, according to the department’s own press release.

The timeline from the FCPD statement: on September 22 at approximately 1:00 p.m., loss prevention staff at the Target on New Guinea Road in Burke reported that a customer concealed the barcode of one item using a less expensive item during a self-checkout transaction — then left the store with both items after paying for one. The customer was identified as Abram, who was in uniform and on duty at the time.

That same day, at approximately 5:00 p.m., a similar incident was reported at the Target at Springfield Mall — same officer, same trick, this time off duty.

It was store loss prevention that caught both incidents — not the police department’s own systems. Internal Affairs and the Major Crimes Bureau were notified immediately, and Abram was placed on administrative leave.

Detectives filed the charges by criminal summons — meaning no arrest, no booking photo, and as of October 9 the case hadn’t even been entered into the county’s online court records yet.

Chief Kevin Davis drew the line: “I am disheartened that a police officer has betrayed the public trust with these intentional acts of criminal misconduct. It is unacceptable, and I will not tolerate it.”

But here’s the second act: the department confirmed to FFXnow that Abram will retire on October 16 instead of facing termination. Twenty-three years in, and the exit is a pension with two open misdemeanor counts — no firing on the record.

Eleven outlets picked the story up within a day. Two stores in one day reads like a routine rather than an accident, and the open question is whether either store’s records show prior visits that were never caught.

Oh Dang Really covers police and government misconduct cases as they develop. All charges are allegations until proven in court.