Home Depot Boosting Security - Urging Action From Congress & DAs
Home Depot combats organized retail crime with investments

Organized retail crime costs an average of $719,548 for every $1 billion in sales

Home Depot has ramped up its security investments over the past several months as retailers across the United States have been targeted by a surge in organized crime.

"We've been doing more physical security. We've been innovating some new tools and technologies to make it a little bit harder for the bad guys and girls to steal products," Home Depot Vice President of Asset Protection Scott Glenn told FOX Business. "But we've also been investing in our own behind the scenes technology, innovative things like activation of product."

Product-activation technology utilizes Bluetooth to create an on-and-off switch in certain products that must be activated through a transaction at the register.

Glenn believes that the rise of anonymous online marketplaces, mask requirements during the COVID-19 pandemic, police funding being cut in some U.S. cities and the opioid epidemic are all factors that have helped embolden bad actors to commit retail crimes.

"It just kind of boils down to there's an opportunity," he explained. "And I think that there's a certain group of folks out there, bad actors as we like to refer to them, that are seeing the consequences and the risk of even being caught doing any of these things are much lower than I would argue that they were five years ago."

In addition to stepping up its security investments, Home Depot has signed onto a letter with 19 other retail executives urging Congress to pass the Integrity, Notification and Fairness in Online Retail Marketplaces (INFORM) for Consumers Act, which would aim to make it easier for consumers to identify third-party sellers and harder for criminals to sell counterfeit products online.

"We believe that online accountability is a must. It has to happen at the federal level for it to be very effective. And we've been working with our government relations teams and individual legislators and supporters of the enforcement at the federal level. But we've also been doing it at the state level," Glenn says. "Additionally, we've been working with key district attorneys and key attorneys general across the country making sure that they hear our story and they understand our pain points and the things that we need from them to take this uptick in organized retail activity or crime activity a little bit more seriously across the board." foxbusiness.com

ORC's Impact on Shoppers
Billions lost due to ORC could have consumers paying more for goods
Every year, criminals target retailers around the country and in the Mid-South, taking off with large quantities of expensive items and making them available for sale online or in pawn shops. It's a problem difficult to stop because most workers are ordered not to stop the thieves, and once they're gone, there is little way to track them.

It adds up to billions of dollars stolen from retailers, leaving consumers paying for it.

Walking the aisles of a Home Depot, you can see expensive tools and hardware just about everywhere. However, it's those expensive tools, some of them locked away, that make them targets for what is known as organized retail crime, or ORC.

"We don't talk about the financials only that it's been increasing over the last three to five years, every year," said Mike Combs, director of investigations for Home Depot.

Exact numbers are closely guarded by retailers, many of whom coordinate with trade group Coalition of Law Enforcement and Retail, or CLEAR. CLEAR is run by the head of CVS' investigations, Ben Dugan, who details the group's work in a lengthy interview with the Wall Street Journal.

"There's a couple things that we think are the bigger drivers of this problem getting bigger, and that is the online marketplaces," said Combs, who agreed to interview specifically about issues facing Home Depot. Combs spoke about online marketplaces and the issue they pose for large retailers.

Online marketplaces are where criminals are taking the items they steal and selling them, where they are unable to be tracked. "They've also been kind of a haven for criminals to go out there and sell counterfeit and stolen product without the consumer really knowing who they're buying from," Combs said.

Congress has attempted to legislate against the issue. The INFORM Consumer Act, a bill introduced in the Senate would mandate online marketplaces track the ID, tax ID, bank account and contact information of "high-volume" and "third-party sellers" that it defines as vendors who have made at least 200 sales in a 12-month period, totaling at least $5,000.

"We've done a really good job at Home Depot to offset some of the losses that we're seeing. But that's always a challenge, when you get to a growing loss problem, that prices could creep up." fox13memphis.com

Another State Considers ORC Legislation
Online market takes retail theft to a new level
Retail theft happens regularly, and it isn't always a kid stealing a gumball. The retail industry and law enforcement are increasingly aware of what's known as organized retail crime. It doesn't necessarily involve the mafia, but it usually features groups that hit up stores for high-end items and then try to resell them, often utilizing online marketplaces that allow anonymity.

"The retail theft rings, they come through here fairly often," said Sgt. Roy Hoskins with the St. Joseph Police Department. "We are on a major corridor between Omaha and Kansas City. Sometimes they come here because they think a town of our size is going to be an easier target. And that's not necessarily the case."

Retailers try to counter the trend with security, locking up high-end items and using technology like GPS tracking and alarm tags. But Tony Sheppard, director of loss prevention solutions for ThinkLP, said the trend continues to grow because of the ease of reselling stolen items online.

In Missouri, one state representative filed legislation that seeks to define organized retail crime and stiffen penalties for those who steal from multiple stores. "It acknowledges the fact that there are groups of people who do this in an organized fashion," said Rep. Lane Roberts, R-Joplin. "It's a big, big deal. Retail theft is a high-dollar crime. It has a big impact on the economy."

Under House Bill 2108, a person engaged in organized retail theft would face a Class C or Class B felony, depending on the dollar amount of the stolen merchandise. Roberts, a former Joplin police chief, also seeks greater accountability from the online platforms that can be used to resell stolen items.

His proposal would require online marketplaces to verify certain information from high-volume, third-party sellers. This could include bank information, a photo ID or a physical address, phone number or email account.

Roberts anticipates some pushback, but he believes this is the best way to tackle the problem. A comparison could be made with a pawn shop, which has a legal responsibility to work with police and avoid dealing in stolen items. newspressnow.com

Using CA's Budget Surplus to Fight Retail Crime
Newsom wants to use California's $46 billion surplus to combat crime, homelessness, and other crises

California Gov. Gavin Newsom proposes using funds to combat homelessness, crime, climate change, wealth inequality and the COVID-19 pandemic

Gov. Gavin Newsom proposed a budget Monday that would use California's repeat surplus to help combat the thorniest problems facing the Bay Area and the state, from a lack of affordable housing to growing street encampments to organized retail theft.

Newsom's ambitious spending proposal comes as California projects it will have a $45.7 billion budget surplus heading into the 2022-23 fiscal year, which starts July 1, due to another year of higher-than-expected tax revenue fueled by a rapid economic rebound.


The governor has proposed spending much of the one-time surplus focusing on five key areas, which his office called the state's "greatest existential threats": combating the COVID-19 pandemic, climate change, homelessness, wealth inequality and crime.

The governor said his budget will also include about $300 million to combat organized retail theft, increasingly brazen smash-and-grab crimes that have drawn national attention. Newsom's plan includes $255 million for a grant program to give police more tools to arrest and investigate thieves.

But some criminal justice advocates are skeptical that putting more funding into policing efforts is the right approach, saying the budget for law enforcement is already inflated and that concerns about theft are driven by a national media frenzy.  sfchronicle.com

California's Retail Crime Surge is Top Issue in State Budget Debates
Op-Ed: CA's Next Budget Needs To Fix Long-Festering Problems - & New Ones

Skewed priorities in past budgets have allowed problems to fester; many are now reaching the crisis stage.

The Legislature re-convened for the second half of the 2021-22 session Jan. 3. Due to the magnitude of the problems we face, priority number one will be creating a budget that addresses our most pressing concerns.

As Assembly Minority Leader, I recently joined Assemblyman Vince Fong, vice chair of the Budget Committee, in a letter asking the Governor to fully fund public safety, including curtailing "smash and grabs" by expanding the California Highway Patrol's Organized Retail Theft Program. patch.com

Big City Progressive DA's 'Soft on Crime' Approach
Op-Ed: Manhattan's D.A. 'reimagines' crimes but even social justice warriors will tire of being victimized

This "progressive path" has destroyed the proud city I served as a "street agent" in the FBI's New York City Office

Last week, the newly-minted D.A. Alvin L. Bragg, Jr., who made history as the first African-American elected to the post, issued a 10-page memorandum to his staff that essentially dismantles the penal code in New York.

It hews to the progressive prosecutor movement's goals of emptying prisons and transforming the justice system into one less punitive. Running counter to recently-elected New York City Mayor Eric Adams's pledge to reduce the rise of violent crime, Bragg vows not to prosecute fare evasion, trespassing, and resisting arrest. Criminals, take note.

An analysis of the murder wave in 2020, conducted by The Marshall Project, determined that minority communities were the hardest hit, with 85 percent of the homicide increase located in communities of color.

The "solution" to this surge? Well, Alvin Bragg's progressive prosecutor colleagues in Philadelphia, Chicago, Los Angeles, and San Francisco feel they have the answers. And yet, "defund the police," bail reform, and de-policing efforts haven't been wildly successful in cities where politicians imposed them. We're about to witness the natural course-correction of dangerous overreach in New York City. It began just days after Bragg's memo was made public.

This "soft on crime" approach has been attempted before. Just ask any New York City resident old enough to recall the criminal heyday during the 1970s and 1980s. It can be argued that New York was simply broke and lacked the necessary resources to police throughout those decades. However, it took a tougher application of policing during the ensuing 1990s and 2000s to engineer the City's complete turnaround. Yes, policies matter. Sound policies contribute mightily to deterrence and act as a societal insurance policy, ensuring public safety for all. foxnews.com

MD Governor Pushes for Major Crime Legislation
Gov. Hogan calling on city leaders for support of crime plan, despite silence
Maryland Governor Larry Hogan is calling on Baltimore City and state leaders to do more to stop the violence, as he reintroduces major crime legislation. But despite that call to action from the governor, we're hearing silence pretty much from City Hall.

The renewed call from Hogan came as the full Baltimore city council met for the first time this year. But not a single item on Monday's agenda had to do with the city's violence. The city has already recorded 12 non-fatal shootings and 6 homicides since the beginning of the year. One of the first victims murdered was 17-year-old Bernard "Mooshka" Thomas III. foxbaltimore.com

'Crime tourists': An international spree targets D.C. area's wealthy Asian residents
A string of burglaries in the suburbs revealed a crime trend with worldwide reach

One-Third of Workers Calling in Sick?
B.C. employers talk 'worst-case scenario' and 'last resort' as they plan for mass sicknesses

"This will mean a crunch, particularly for the service industry. They've been through this before, so presumably they have contingency plans. But none of this is very good for business."

London Drugs President Clint Mahlman thinks of the company's pharmacy operations as "The Alamo".

In a worst-case scenario where a large number of staff called in sick due to COVID-19, Mahlman said the drugstore chain would prioritize its pharmacies to ensure people could still get important medications. "We have a robust plan in place."

For Surrey RCMP, where staff have already been asked about their willingness and ability to shift roles at short notice should COVID cases rise, public safety is top priority, including emergency response and time-sensitive investigations and court proceedings, said Sgt. Elenore Sturko.

A day after provincial health officer Dr. Bonnie Henry warned employers to be prepared for as much as a third of their workforce to be sick on any given day, B.C. businesses and public-sector employers were ramping up safety measures and firming up plans to keep essential services operating.

Thompson said adapting, or reducing operations while remaining open, is likely a better strategy than closing altogether, as it will allow businesses to retain staff. Paid sick days are also a good idea to increase employee engagement and retention.

London Drug's "business continuity team" has put in about 3,000 hours of planning since the pandemic began, which pales in comparison to the extra time taken to sort out supply-chain challenges and conduct extra cleaning and sanitizing, said Mahlman.

On top of its contingency planning, which might see hours reduced, staffing reorganized or some stores closed in a "worst-case scenario," the B.C.-based company has a vaccine mandate and has asked staff to wear N95 masks. vancouversun.com

Shopping Restrictions a Drag on Canadian Retailers
Canadian Apparel Retailers to Struggle and Continue Losing Market Share Amid New COVID Variant: Trendex Report

The reemergence of COVID will continue to put a strain on the Canadian apparel industry with uncertainty over shopping restrictions in 2022.

A new report by Trendex North America, a marketing research and consulting firm, says apparel specialty chains will lose share in the market for the sixth year in a row.

"I think the expectations from a value metric standpoint, meaning sales, you can't really speculate because you don't know how long the newest phase of COVID is going to affect shopping restrictions," said Randy Harris, president and owner of Trendex North America. "I was very optimistic last July when it looked like we were beginning to come back to pre-COVID sales levels on a monthly basis. Certainly, beginning June and July the industry was selling more apparel than it was, not just the previous year but than in 2019. So it made me very optimistic from a sales standpoint.

"Right now, I have no idea what to expect in terms of sales for this year and anybody that says they do is crazy."

In November, a report by Trendex said Canadian retail apparel sales fell by 23.6 per cent year-over-year in 2020 and the forecast growth was 13.9 per cent in 2021. At that time, Trendex was forecasting 8.2 per cent year-over-year growth in 2022. retail-insider.com

'Do Not Travel' to Canada
Americans should avoid travel to Canada amid COVID surge, U.S. CDC says
The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and U.S. State Department on Monday advised against travel to neighboring Canada because of a rising number of COVID-19 cases as the Omicron variant spreads.

The CDC elevated its travel recommendation to "Level Four: Very High" for Canada, telling Americans they should avoid travel, while the State Department also on Monday issued its "Level Four: Do Not Travel" advisory for Canada citing COVID-19 cases.

The CDC, which lists about 80 destinations worldwide at Level Four, also raised the island of Curacao to Level Four.

In November, the United States lifted restrictions at its land borders with Canada and Mexico for fully vaccinated foreign nationals, ending historic curbs on non-essential travelers put in place in March 2020 to address the COVID-19 pandemic.

This month, Canada broke its one-day record for the highest number of people hospitalized with COVID-19. Last Friday, officials said new daily cases had soared by 65% in the previous week, threatening healthcare systems. reuters.com

COVID & Mental Health
Mental Health Resources for Retail Employees
The COVID-19 pandemic has presented unique challenges for retail employees. To assist retailers, RCC has assembled resources that you can use to help support employees.

The past year has been particularly challenging for all and we know you want to do what is best for your employees while looking after your own wellbeing. RCC has gathered a list of national and regional websites and resources to help you navigate mental health and help you support your staff during these unprecedent times.

General Resources:

● Canadian Mental Health Association
● Wellness Together Canada
● Find Mental Health Services, Help and support in your community with ementalhealth.ca
● Mental Health Commission of Canada
● Bounceback - Canadian Mental Health Association retailcouncil.org

Relief Grant for Ontario Small Businesses Not Enough for Lockdown Losses
 

Amazon's New Cybersecurity Head
Amazon adds cybersecurity veteran to the S-team, the top leadership group that reports to CEO Andy Jassy

Longtime AWS security chief Stephen Schmidt promoted to head cybersecurity efforts companywide.

Amazon is centralizing its cybersecurity operations under longtime Amazon Web Services chief information security officer Stephen Schmidt.

In his new role, Schmidt will report directly to Amazon CEO Andy Jassy as a member of the "S-team," a group of 29 senior executives who set business priorities, a spokesperson confirmed.

Putting one person in charge of companywide cybersecurity will make it easier to standardize security practices across Amazon, the spokesperson said in an email. She added that Schmidt's promotion had been in the works for months.

Schmidt joined AWS in 2008 as software director and assumed the division's CISO job two years later, according to his LinkedIn profile.

In his new role, Schmidt will have the title Chief Security Officer. CJ Moses, who is replacing Schmidt as AWS CISO; Four Flynn, CISO of Amazon's consumer division; and Lakshmi Hanspal, CISO for Devices, will report to Schmidt, the spokesperson confirmed. businessinsider.com

Amazon Snatching Up Former Sears Locations
Fresh look for an old Sears: Amazon opening another grocery store in plaza south of Seattle
A shopping plaza south of Seattle in Federal Way, Wash., has a Fresh look, as Amazon is getting set to open another physical grocery store.

GeekWire spotted signage on the Amazon Fresh location at The Commons, a 759,000-square-foot mall at 1928 S. Commons, 22 miles from Seattle. The mall is currently anchored by Target, Dick's Sporting Goods, Century Theaters and Kohl's stores.

The location for the grocery store on the west side of the mall is a former Sears store, which closed in April 2018. A Macy's store at The Commons also closed, in April 2021. Both longtime retail brands have closed multiple stores in recent years in the face of changing customer habits - and the rise of Amazon and other e-commerce retailers.

Amazon did not yet have to details to share on an opening date for the store, when contacted by GeekWire.

Amazon currently has three of its branded grocery stores in Washington state: at the Factoria shopping center in Bellevue, Wash.; on South Jackson Street in Seattle; and an Amazon Go Grocery on Capitol Hill in Seattle. Signage has also gone up for a new store in North Seattle at 13025 Aurora Ave. N.

There are 23 Amazon Fresh stores across the U.S. geekwire.com

UK surge in post-Christmas returns reveals dark side of online shopping boom

West Hartford, CT: Police searching for suspects in robberies at Macy's, Ulta
West Hartford police are investigating robberies that happened at Macy's in the Westfarms Mall and a nearby Ulta Tuesday. Officers responded to the Westfarms Mall just before 4 p.m. on a report of a robbery at the Macy's within the mall. Macy's Loss Prevention told police four suspects entered the store with large black garbage bags and began filling them with merchandise. A Macy's Loss Prevention officer attempted to intervene, struggling with one of the suspects, police said. At that time, police said one of the suspects reached for his waistband, which they say imply he was armed. The loss prevention officer disengaged and the suspects fled, police said. The loss prevention officer was not injured. Minutes later, police said the Ulta at 1555 New Britain Ave. in West Hartford reported their store had a similar theft. Police said Ulta employees reported three suspects entered the store with garbage bags and began stealing a large amount of fragrances. Police said the suspects fled in a dark grey Toyota Highlander that has not been located. Police said the West Hartford Ulta was alerted that their Waterbury store had a similar theft happen around 3:30 p.m. wtnh.com

San Jose, CA: Smash-and-grab robbers terrorize California jewelry store employees: 'Weren't sure if they were going to die'
A California jewelry store owner is speaking out after his business was hit by a violent smash-and-grab robbery, leaving his father injured by thieves who reportedly swiped more than $100,000 worth of merchandise. Owner of "Heart of Gold" in San Jose, Eric Orozco, joined "Fox & Friends First" on Wednesday to discuss the incident that left his dad and other employees terrified for their lives. "They terrified my family, they terrified all of our employees," Orozco told Carley Shimkus. "They weren't sure if they were going to die. They weren't sure how escalated those moments were. It was just some of the worst moments of some of their lives." He added, "My dad was injured and... that really broke my heart to see. I mean, had the pressure been a little bit harder on his head, he could have died. So these guys came in and threatened lives." foxnews.com

Asheville, NC : APD arrests man who allegedly stole more than 30 guns from Carolina Guns and Gear
Asheville police arrested a man who they say broke into Carolina Guns and Gear Jan. 7 and stole more than 30 guns. Jesse Lynn Williams, 33, of Asheville, was arrested Jan. 11 on a charge of larceny after breaking and/or entering. He is being held in the Buncombe County Detention Center on a $100,000 bond. The Citizen Times obtained numerous warrants issued by APD on other charges: possession of a firearm by a felon, possession of a stolen firearm and larceny of a firearm. These warrants list multiple offense dates for Williams, including Dec. 25, Jan. 10 and Jan. 6. According to a Jan. 7 APD news release, officers responded to a business alarm at Carolina Guns at 4:40 a.m. that morning. Employees said at least 33 handguns were stolen. citizen-times.com

Santa Ana, CA: Three suspects were arrested at the Outlets of Orange as they tried to steal thousands of dollars of clothing
CHP arrested three retail thieves at an orange outlet while trying to steal thousands of dollars in retail goods. Two of the thieves saw the Organized Retail Crime Task Force walking towards the mall with a foil-lined bag that helped steal goods without triggering an anti-theft alarm in the store. Discovered by CHP officers. "Booster bag." CHP officials saw one of the suspects coming out of the store full of booster bags. When the male suspect went out, a female accomplice came in. The suspect dumped the stolen goods in a minivan in the parking lot. CHP investigators then arrested him and waited for his accomplice to return to the minivan. The suspect stole 31 pairs of Levi's jeans worth $ 2,202 using a booster bag and a tool designed to disable security sensors.

A CHP investigator was stuck at an outlet, and about an hour later, he saw another suspect behaving suspiciously. The suspect was packing the goods in another booster bag. CHP investigators stopped him and found that he had expensive Gucci clothes worth at least $ 2,499. The suspect also had a robbery tool that was almost the same as the tool that the other suspects were equipped with. The three suspects were arrested for violating California's organized retail crime law and several other theft charges. californianewstimes.com

Brownsville, TX: Caught on camera: Theft suspect seen stealing merchandise from Old Navy