Reshipping / Repackaging Mule
A person recruited — usually through a fake job ad — to receive stolen goods or fraudulently purchased merchandise at home and forward them to another address, often abroad.
Also known as: package mule, parcel reshipping scam, repackaging job scam
Last reviewed: 10 June 2026
Reshipping mules are recruited via online job ads offering 'quality control inspector' or 'package processing agent' roles that promise flexible work-from-home income. The victim receives parcels of goods bought with stolen credit cards, repackages them, and ships them to addresses provided by the scammer, often in another country.
The mule bears the physical and legal risk: their name and address appear on shipping manifests, making them the traceable link in the fraud. Merchants who discover the fraud may report the mule's address to law enforcement, and the mule may face charges for receiving stolen property or money laundering.
Reshipping operations are a significant vector for converting card fraud proceeds into untraceable physical goods. Victims rarely realise they are participating in a crime until contacted by police or a retailer's fraud team.
Examples
- A 'work-from-home logistics coordinator' role asks the recruit to receive electronics parcels and re-ship them to Eastern Europe.
- A victim advertised as a 'quality inspector' receives designer goods, attaches new labels, and posts them — items later traced to card fraud.