What started as a bizarre retail scam has quickly turned into one of the strangest theft stories you’ll hear this year — involving Lego, dried pasta, and a plan that quite literally fell apart.

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Police in California have arrested a man accused of pulling off a nationwide scheme that saw thousands of dollars worth of Lego pieces removed from boxes and replaced with something far less valuable.

Pasta.

According to the Irvine Police Department (IPD), the alleged operation spanned multiple Target stores across the United States, with investigators linking the suspect to dozens of incidents, CTV News reports.

In a statement shared on social media, the department leaned into the sheer absurdity of the case.

“You read that correctly,” the IPD wrote in an Instagram post. “We are talking about durum wheat semolina pasta, and what we are calling a pasta-tively terrible plan.”

The suspect, identified as 28-year-old Jarrelle Augustine from Paramount, California, is accused of buying Lego sets, removing the valuable contents — including sought-after minifigures — and then returning the boxes after filling them with dried pasta to replicate the original weight.

Authorities say the scale of the alleged scheme is significant.

Target reported at least 70 thefts nationwide that were traced back to the same suspect.

Investigators estimate the total loss at around $34,000.

Despite the unusual method, police say the plan ultimately didn’t hold up under scrutiny.

“But like most bad builds, this one didn’t hold together,” the IPD wrote. “IPD detectives snapped into action, conducted surveillance, and identified the suspect.”

Surveillance footage appears to show the suspect removing Lego boxes from store shelves, while additional bodycam video captures the moment he was taken into custody.

Jarrelle Augustine was arrested for grand theft and booked into the Orange County Jail, per Fox News.

Police didn’t hold back when delivering a final message to anyone considering copying the idea.

“Everything was awesome in this Lego crime spree until we got involved,” they wrote, referencing “Everything Is Awesome!!!” from the 2014 film, The Lego Movie.

And the warning didn’t stop there. “If your master plan involves swapping LEGOs for linguine, we can promise your plan will be cooked al dente,” they wrote.

The case has also sparked plenty of reaction online, with social media users leaning into the humour of the situation.

“This case had so many pastabilities. Good for IPD, using their noodle,” one commenter quipped.

“You mean to tell me he was an… impasta?! I’ll see myself out,” another joked.

While the puns may keep coming, the charges are serious.

And for Augustine, what might have seemed like a clever workaround has now turned into a full-blown criminal case — proving that even the most unusual schemes can still land you in very real trouble.

Credit: Instagram/Irvine Police Department (screenshots)