PETERS TOWNSHIP, Pa. — A 19-year-old facing nearly 60 felony theft charges is weighing a plea deal after police say he drained customer rewards accounts at Giant Eagle.
Investigators say Paul Kostanich is accused of stealing Giant Eagle customer information, then using it to cash out $670 in MyPerks fuel points. Police believe he purchased the stolen data off the dark web, then tapped into the victims’ accounts while using his own debit card.
In all, authorities say 19 Giant Eagle customers were targeted in the scheme.
Kostanich appeared in court Tuesday to consider a plea agreement but asked for more time. The deal offered by prosecutors includes three years’ probation, a ban on visiting Giant Eagle stores, and no computer access except for school or work.
Outside the courtroom, his mother defended him through tears, insisting her son isn’t a criminal. Kostanich himself told Channel 11 he doesn’t understand why police refer to the website he used as the “dark web,” saying it was a public website where he purchased the accounts and “anyone could do it.”
He will return to court in late September.
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