Retail Anti-Theft Measures Continue to Make National Headlines
Businesses take drastic action to protect against rampant shoplifting, organized crime thefts
Numerous pharmacies, grocery stores and other retailers have shortened store hours or been forced to close permanently as locked-up merchandise becomes commonplace to protect against shoplifters and smash-and-grab thieves.

Crime has weighed heavily on retailers across the country, costing businesses about $94.5 billion, the National Retail Federation reported last month. It has affected businesses large and small, with Target reporting a 50% increase in shoplifting incidents last year, accounting for a whopping $400 million in losses.

A new report released by DealAid, which was provided to Fox News Digital, found that more than 80% of retailers across the country have seen an increase in violence associated with theft last year. Some 56% of small retail businesses experienced theft in the last year, and 46% of small businesses had to increase prices due to shoplifting losses, according to the report.

Beyond installing more private security measures such as cameras, security guards and team members dedicated to retail loss prevention, some stores are taking more high-tech measures to protect their merchandise.

Home-repair chain Lowe's announced a crackdown on power tool thefts, with a new process that would leave the items virtually unusable after they're stolen. A new initiative called "Project Unlock" will utilize RFID chips and scanners to activate power tools when they are purchased.

Home Depot began a similar initiative last year to protect its power tools. But for many other retailers, locking merchandise down remains the main response to the crime surge - especially in cities such as Los Angeles, San Francisco and New York. foxbusiness.com

   RELATED: Businesses innovating anti-theft measures as shoplifting, crime surge


Bodega Backlash: NYC's ORC Blame Game Continues
NYC shoplifting has never been worse, say weary bodega owners
Shoplifting at city bodegas "is the worst I've seen it in my life,'' a 20-year store owner said Sunday - the day after The Post reported some shops are so desperate to curb criminals that they've put locks and chains on their detergent.

Other owners are also moving heavy equipment to block aisles to prevent thieves from fleeing, putting up PlexiGlas even around candy and planning to lock up their ice cream, the organization said.

Corner stores across the five boroughs experience "looting" daily, said United Bodegas of America President Fernando Mateo at Sunday's gathering.

The bodega's laundry detergent was decked with heavy chains during Matteo's announcement. Detergent is the most expensive item on the shelves, and it's easy to resell, he explained.

The store's ice-cream refrigerator was empty "because of so much theft," Mateo said - adding that the store's owner planned to get a lock for the fridge in the future. Locks on everyday items makes the entire bodega experience less seamless for customers, Mateo said.

Trinidad estimated losing 15 to 20% off her bottom line to theft. Mateo blamed the scourge of bodega shoplifters on a lax criminal-justice system that allows thieves to get off with a desk-appearance ticket instead of being locked up.

"NYPD is doing their job, they come when you call them. They will make an arrest, but that person will usually get a desk-appearance ticket, and nothing will happen to him because the district attorneys and the judges are not willing to prosecute these type of crimes. And that is a problem," Matteo explained.
nypost.com

   RELATED: Bronx bodega owners chaining up merchandise to deter thieves


Grand Larceny Fueling Crime Surge in NYC
Park Slope's Crime Doubles In 2023's First Weeks: NYPD

A sharp rise in grand larcenies drove up crime in the 78th Precinct compared to the same weeks last year, newly released data shows.

Major crime in Park Slope's traditionally sleepy police precinct nearly doubled as 2023 dawned compared to the same weeks last year, new data shows. Cops at the 78th Precinct logged 99 complaints of major felonies so far this year, according to crime statistics released Monday. They had 50 complaints during the same early weeks of 2022, data shows.

The increase was largely driven by a sharp rise in grand larceny complaints, which totaled 62 compared to 29 last year, according to the data. Grand larcenies - which are mostly large-dollar shoplifting complaints - have been a rising issue citywide in the past year, said Michael LiPetri, the NYPD's chief of crime control strategies, at a recent news conference.

The Post interviewed some neighborhood shop owners who, in the tabloid's words, were "terrorized" by increasingly brazen criminals. The stories attempted to draw a link between the state's new bail laws and repeat offenders going back on the street after arrests to pilfer more property - as did LiPetri.

But a rise in shoplifting appears to be a national problem beyond New York and its bail laws. Retailers across the country reported increases in organized retail crime incidents during the coronavirus pandemic, Forbes reported. patch.com


Crime is Contributing to Big City Business Closures
Nike's exit shows just how far downtown Seattle is from a comeback
Nike hasn't shared its reasons for departing downtown, where it has been a retail pillar for more than 26 years. Local wags blame now-familiar culprits, among them COVID, lack of downtown parking and, especially, street crime. And to be sure, Friday's crowds were watched over by a clutch of security guards.

Reports of crimes such as robbery, assault, rape and burglary were down in 2022 versus 2021, while homicides remained the same, according to the Seattle Police Department dashboard data through November. The number of tent encampments has fallen, says Jon Scholes, president and CEO of the downtown association. "There's still work to be done," Scholes added. "But we're headed in the right direction, certainly."

But, clearly, downtown has a long way to go. Many of the challenges that preceded COVID, such as shoplifting and competition from online retailers and brick-and-mortar stores at regional malls, are the same or worse. Even a 2022 holiday season largely free of COVID restrictions wasn't enough to reinvigorate retail icons like Nordstrom, whose downtown flagship store was less than full and "still showing the effects of the slowdown," said Rosen.

As of 2021, roughly 500 downtown street-level businesses had closed since the pandemic started, according to the downtown association, and that's likely increased since. And many storefronts remain empty. Retail vacancy in downtown's central business district is now around 13.5%, up from less than 2% in 2019, according to Damian Sevilla, who specializes in Seattle-area retail sales and leasing for First Western Properties. seattletimes.com


El Paso, TX: Update: Accused El Paso Walmart shooter Patrick Crusius to plead guilty to federal hate-crime raps
The man accused of targeting Hispanics when he allegedly killed 23 people at a Texas Walmart plans to plead guilty to federal hate-crime charges, new court papers reveal. Lawyers representing Patrick Crusius informed the feds over the weekend of his intent to change his plea to guilty in a court filing obtained by El Paso Matters. The motion was filed days after federal prosecutors announced they would not seek the death penalty for Crusius. The 24-year-old allegedly drove 10 hours from the Dallas suburb of Allen to El Paso to hunt Hispanics in the 2019 massacre. nypost.com


Startling Revelation About the Increased Violence & Crime Across the Country

Juv. Homicides Acting Alone Up 30% - Acting By Multiple Juv. Up 66% - Juv Killing Juv. Highest in 20yrs.
How Easy Access to Guns & "Raise the Age" Laws Led to Catch & Release & Recidivism

Juvenile Crime Surges, Reversing Long Decline. 'It's Just Kids Killing Kids.'

Violence among children has soared across the country since 2020. One consequence: a mounting toll of young victims.

Violence among children has soared across the country since 2020, a stark reversal of a decades long decline in juvenile crime.

In the U.S., homicides committed by juveniles acting alone rose 30% in 2020 from a year earlier, while those committed by multiple juveniles increased 66%, the highest it's been in more than 20 years. The number of killings committed by children under 14 was the highest in 20 years, according to the most recent federal data.

The jump comes amid an overall wave of violent crime in the first two years of the pandemic-particularly homicides and shootings-that swept through urban and rural areas alike. The rise in juvenile shootings hasn't been limited to the biggest cities.

One juvenile legal defense attorney blames the growing youth violence on what he described as shockingly easy access to guns. "I've never seen it this bad. I've never seen the amount of weapons that have flooded the streets of New York."

"They think it's cool," said K'Mya, a team leader at the Young Chances Foundation, a community organization that seeks to prevent violence. "They want that gun to define themselves and for people to be scared of them."

Read More About this Startling Revelation


'39 mass shootings in just 24 days so far this year, data shows'
The list of U.S. mass shootings continues to grow

The shooting in Monterey Park, Calif., is the deadliest in the United States since the Uvalde massacre last year.

The mass shooting that left 11 people dead in Monterey Park, Calif., on Saturday night is the deadliest in the United States since the massacre in Uvalde, Texas, last May, when 19 children and two teachers were killed.

Saturday's shooting is also the second major attack in less than a week in California. Last Monday, gunmen killed six people in Tulare County, Calif., including a 16-year-old and her 10-month-old child, in a shooting that the police said was probably gang-related.

There is no consensus on what constitutes a mass shooting, complicating the efforts of government, nonprofits and news organizations to document the scope of the problem. The Gun Violence Archive, a nonprofit research group, defines a mass shooting as involving at least four people killed or injured.

By that measure, there have been at least 39 mass shootings so far in 2023, according to the group. It counted 648 mass shootings last year, 21 of which involved five or more fatalities. nytimes.com

   RELATED: Death toll in Monterey Park shooting now 11; motive still unclear


2 California Mass Shootings in 3 Days
7 Killed in Another Mass Shooting in California

A suspect was in custody after he was found in a vehicle outside a sheriff's office substation in Half Moon Bay, the authorities said.

Seven people were shot to death on Monday afternoon in San Mateo County, Calif., the sheriff's office said, the second mass shooting in the state in three days.

The shooting happened around 2:20 p.m. local time at two separate locations near Highway 92 and the Half Moon Bay city limits, about 30 miles south of San Francisco, the authorities said. Another person was transported to Stanford Medical Center with life-threatening injuries.

The shooting came two days after 11 people were killed at a Lunar New Year festival in Monterey Park, Calif. Officials called this the deadliest mass shooting in Los Angeles County's history. nytimes.com


Dozens Killed or Injured Over 24 Hours of Mass Shootings
Nearly 50 victims in mass shootings across the U.S. in 24 hours
A series of mass shootings across the United States left 12 people dead and dozens more injured in less than 24 hours, officials say. A shooting at a California dance club was the deadliest shooting so far this year.

In California, a 72-year-old man opened fire at the Star Dance Studio in Monterey Park, next to Los Angeles, as the Asian community celebrated Lunar New Year's Eve. The shooting left 11 people dead and 10 others injured.

The incident was followed by a series of other mass shootings in the U.S., leaving dozens more injured. The tally does not include shootings with less than four victims. bnonews.com

Voters want Congress to address gun violence and mass shootings
Mass shootings and gun policy are a high priority for voters regardless of whether they live in rural, suburban, or small or large urban areas of the country-voters from all geographical areas named gun policy as a key priority at either 16% or 17%.

Town hall being held at Temple University as crime rises in Philly
 
Memphis business owners fed up with smash-and-grab crimes

US: 103.8M Cases - 1.1M Dead - 100.9M Recovered
Worldwide: 673.4M Cases - 6.7M Dead - 645.3M Recovered

Private Industry Security Guard Deaths: 362   Law Enforcement Officer Deaths: 828

Annual COVID Shots?
The FDA considers a major shift in the nation's COVID vaccine strategy
The goal is to simplify vaccination against COVID and perhaps adopt an approach similar to what is used for the flu vaccine, with annual updates to match whatever strain of the virus is circulating. This is according to a federal official who spoke under the condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak publicly.

Under the new approach, most people would be advised to simply get whatever the latest version of the vaccine is annually each fall like the flu vaccine. They wouldn't have to worry about how many shots they've already gotten and which one they got when. Those who still need to receive two doses initially, such as young children and older people, would use the same formulation for all three shots.

Vaccine makers would update the annual shot through a process that would begin each spring to try a match the vaccine as closely as possible to whatever variant will likely be dominant in the coming winter. That's how the flu vaccine is formulated each year. npr.org


Fewer Companies Offering Remote - Drifting Back to Normalcy
The Job Market for Remote Workers Is Shrinking
Many prospective workers who were determined to get a remote job just a few months ago are hitting a wall as remote listings rapidly dwindle.

After remote work surged during the pandemic, fewer employers now feel the need to lure talent with the promise of working from home. Remote jobs made up 13.2% of postings advertised on LinkedIn last month—down from 20.6% in March. Other job sites such as Indeed.com and ZipRecruiter also report declines in remote listings.

The decline in remote listings marks the latest shift in the power dynamic between employers and employees. Companies are showing they can be choosier in their recruiting after months of scrambling for new talent. Hiring and wage growth have slowed from the red-hot pace of much of 2022. And while many laid-off workers in tech and elsewhere are finding employment again, it is taking, on average, longer to secure a new job than it did last spring. wsj.com


Flu, Covid-19 and RSV are all trending down for the first time in months

CDC to utilize airplane sewage to track new Covid variants
 

'Retail CEO Crisis'
Why the industry's top job is suddenly the hardest to fill

At least 10 large retail companies have lost their CEOs in recent months.

It's the surest sign yet of a crisis facing the retail industry. Gap Inc.; Bed Bath & Beyond; Under Armour; Adidas; Foot Locker; Dollar General; Kohl's; VF Corporation, the owner of Vans; Designer Brands Inc., the parent company of DSW; the luxury-consignment marketplace The RealReal; and now, the personal-styling and clothing site Stitch Fix, have recently had leadership shake-ups. And while some have successfully found new CEOs, others seem to be struggling to fill one of corporate America's most-coveted jobs.

Experts told Insider the burst of turnover traces back to the pandemic. Supply chains got snarled, shoppers stopped visiting stores, and stimulus payments spiked demand, each making it difficult to measure how business was doing. As pandemic restrictions have eased and a possible recession nears, boards of directors are getting a better look at the underlying numbers and doing some "housecleaning," but struggling to find good candidates.

Retail jobs were once considered stepping stones to launch employees into a long career in the industry. Marvin Ellison, the CEO of Lowe's, got his start making $4.35 an hour as a Target security guard; Costco's chief exec W. Craig Jelinek's first job was as a food stocker at a discount department store, and he worked his way up the ranks at Costco over three decades.

Now, management training has fallen by the wayside, Catherine Lepard, the global managing partner of the executive-recruiting firm Heidrick & Struggles' retail and direct-to-consumer practice, said. That means many retailers simply don't have as many management candidates, even though CEOs of large retail companies can make tens of millions of dollars annually.

That's led to some retailers hunting for CEOs outside of the retail world - Under Armour hired Stephanie Linnartz, a Marriott Hotels veteran, to lead the company, for example - while others, like Gap, still haven't filled their top job. businessinsider.com


Interesting Article & Discussion Topic in Retail Wire
Can opera keep loiterers away from store parking lots?
A 7-Eleven in Austin, TX, is blasting opera music nonstop outside the store as a deterrent against loiters and panhandlers.

Speaking to KVUE, a local television station, owner Sukhi Sandhu said he has faced issues since a homeless encampment developed next to the location. He has found needles on his property and claims that customers have been harassed. He told KVUE, "Customers tell us, 'Hey, there is nobody in the parking lot. Nobody came to my window to ask for a dollar.' The customers are saying it's working."

Several Walgreens in Reno likewise began playing classical music earlier this year outside their stores to deter homeless from congregating. Walgreens said in a statement provided to News4-Fox11, "We take steps to ensure the music is only loud enough for the immediate area around the store and cannot be heard by residents in surrounding neighborhoods."

A 7-Eleven in Canada reportedly first came up with the tactic in 1985. It has also been used in recent years by stores in Los Angeles, San Francisco, Seattle and Portland. The manuever is also sometimes used to disperse teens within transit systems and in public places in the U.K. and Australia.

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Empowering Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion in Corporate Security
Funded by the ASIS Foundation

Download the free executive summary.

No purchase necessary for ASIS Members. Download full report:
https://www.asisonline.org/globalassets/foundation/documents/research/asis-foundation-dei-report.pdf

The business case for employee diversity is strong. Research shows that diverse teams, especially those with diverse leadership, have higher levels of innovation, including disruptive innovation, which is needed in 'game changing' contexts like security. It boosts productivity, plus diverse teams are likely to better align with the business.

This new research report from the ASIS Foundation examines the current state of diversity, equity and inclusion (DE&I) in corporate security and discusses best practices that are working to move the needle. It explores the nature and extent of diversity, the experience of diverse professionals within the industry, the views of security leaders plus the types of initiatives they are spearheading. In addition, it identifies outstanding challenges and makes recommendations for addressing them.

Unlocking the diversity dividend in your organization often rests upon deliberate efforts to promote equity and maintain an inclusive work environment. This enables staff to bring their whole selves - and therefore all of their talents - to work and compete fairly alongside colleagues.

Learn how to maximize the benefits of diversity in your security department. Download this new Foundation report today.  asisonline.org


Massive UPS Strike Coming This Summer?
350,000 UPS workers may strike this summer
International Brotherhood of Teamsters represents 350,000 UPS workers nationwide. They represent a last bastion of good jobs that offer middle-class pay, pension and health care without requiring a college degree. The average driver earns $95,000 a year. But the company and the Teamsters are negotiating a new contract, and a strike might come Aug. 1 if the two sides can't come to an agreement.

In this time of renewed labor activism, this represents an old-style union situation, rather like the threatened national railroad strike in December. Contrast it with organizing in places such as Amazon warehouses and Starbucks stores. UPS has weathered several strikes in its history, most recently in 1997, which was the largest American labor action since the 1970s.

UPS and the Teamsters have the largest collective bargaining agreement in North America. The stakes are high for both sides. A strike would cut into the record profits UPS posted in 2022. seattletimes.com


The Q4 2022 most popular grocery stores in America are...
 

Walmart to Raise Starting Hourly Wages to $14 from $12
Rivals, including Amazon.com Inc. and Target Corp., have a $15-an-hour minimum wage.

The changes, the latest in a series of increases by Walmart to close the gap with rivals, will push the company's average hourly wages to over $17.50. Currently hourly workers at Walmart earn an average of around $17, a spokeswoman said. wsj.com


Kroger-Albertsons Merger Faces Long Road Before Approval
Consumer advocates, unions and independent grocers are against a deal that would join Kroger and Albertsons, and be lucrative for investors.

Newell Brands to lay off 13% of staff amid restructuring

Judge dismisses Whole Foods workers' lawsuit over 'Black Lives Matter' masks

Apple retail channel employees are facing layoffs

Dollar General partners to open mobile health clinics


Quarterly Results

Verizon Q4 total wireless up 5.9%, total revenue up 3.5%, Full year wireless up 8.6%, revenue up 2.4%

Fingerprints & Facial Recognition Technology (FRT) Instead of Passwords?
How This Cybersecurity Technology Could Replace Passwords

Apple, Google, and Microsoft are already using biometric data such as fingerprint and facial recognition technology (FRT) instead of passwords.

Tech companies are championing new "PassKey" technology, which utilizes biometric data in lieu of passwords, as the future of cybersecurity. But what exactly separates PassKeys and passwords?

According to Ieva Soblickaite, chief product officer at NordPass, traditional passwords are stored in at least two locations; your head, and the servers of the vendor where you've set up an account. These servers are often hacked, and your password can easily be exposed, leaving you vulnerable to cyberattacks.

With PassKey technology, creating a new account starts with two keys, both made up of long combinations of letters and numbers. One is a "public key," which is stored on the vendor's server and essentially serves as your "username," meaning it has no value to hackers. The other key is an encrypted "private key," which is kept on your personal device.

When you attempt to log in to a website or app protected with PassKey tech, the public key will send a "challenge," essentially a math problem that can only be solved by the private key. After verifying your biometric data via a fingerprint or facial recognition scan, the private key is given the go-ahead to solve the challenge issued by the public key, and unlock access to your account.

In addition to being more secure, this method essentially eliminates hackers' ability to perform phishing scams, as individuals don't even know their own passwords. The tech is already being implemented at major companies including PayPal, Kayak, and eBay, and Soblickaite says the tech could be a major boon for e-commerce businesses, as they usually rely on passwords to keep their customers' personal data and credit card information safe, but also run the risk of losing out on business if those customers forget their passwords. inc.com


Top Dark Web Insider Threats
Hunting Insider Threats on the Dark Web

Use threat intelligence to reduce chance of success for malicious insider and Dark Web threats.

To minimize insider threats, all organizations should monitor marketplaces, forums, and social media channels for chatter about their company. This helps them to spot the early warning signs of an imminent attack, such as cybercriminals looking for insider knowledge, or disgruntled employees making unsavory comments. This monitoring must also extend to the Dark Web, as this is a gold mine for cybercriminal reconnaissance on organizations, because threat actors believe that they're out of the reach of law enforcement and cybersecurity teams.

Types of Insider Threat

When we talk about insider threats it is important to understand that there is more than one type of malicious insider. Broadly, you can categorize them in three groups:

Insiders motivated by financial gains: In the current economic climate, employees can be nudged into malicious activity by threat groups. For example, the threat group Lapsus$ infamously posted a recruitment call for help from employees in telecom companies, software and gaming corporations, and call centers - offering money in exchange for information.

Loners and opportunistic threat actors: These are hard-to-spot insiders who use their privileged position in the network to harm the company. While they're statistically less common, they can have a severe impact on an organization when they do strike. For example, the New York Post employee who took an ax to the company's reputation recently by posting offensive messages on its corporate Twitter account. Dark Web analysis can help to spot these malicious actors if and when they publish an inquiry or ask for help on specific issues they face when navigating around the corporate environment. They can also be spotted offering to sell insider information on the Dark Web.

Innocent insiders: These can also unwittingly harm the company by being involved in threat activity without their consent or knowledge. According to research, employees are more than twice as likely to make an error and click malicious links, rather than to maliciously misuse their access. That's who you're up against, but it's also important to understand what malicious actors could be looking for, inquiring about, or selling.

Threat Modeling for Insider Threat - Shifting Left in the Cyber Kill Chain darkreading.com


Time to Update Security & Privacy Protocols for the Metaverse
The metaverse brings a new breed of threats to challenge privacy and security gatekeepers

If your organization isn't already moving into the metaverse, it soon will be. Be warned: today's security protocols and privacy laws may not apply to 3D worlds.

The metaverse is coming; businesses and government agencies are already building virtual worlds to support city services, meetings and conferences, community building, and commerce. They're also rendering spatial apps around travel, car sales, manufacturing, and architecture in what Citi predicts will be a $13-trillion market with 5 billion users by 2030.

"Just as the internet, e-commerce, social media, smartphones, and remote computing have in the past two decades changed the ways companies operate and reach their employees and customers, organizations are now experimenting with the metaverse because they are seeing this as an extension of prior transformations," says Cathy Barrera, founding economist of Prysm Group, which partners with Wharton College in teaching executive education programs on metaverse business and blockchains.

New privacy and security issues will arise within these 3D worlds. As platform providers jostle for dominance, expect similar risks in the metaverse to those we've seen on social media such as phishing, pharming, impersonation, disinformation, and inroads for ransomware. There will also be new impacts on consumer privacy because the amount of rich and detailed data collected by these apps are juicy targets for criminals and marketers. "Metaverse technologies will require a great deal more data to be collected than is already collected in social media, such as how you're turning your head and where your eyes are focused just to position displays correctly," Barerra says. csoonline.com


Global instability increases cyber risk, says World Economic Forum
Over 93% of cybersecurity experts and 86% of business leaders believe "a far-reaching, catastrophic cyber event is likely in the next two years" and there is a critical skills gap that is threatening societies and key infrastructure.

Access Hours of Payment Security Industry Insights
The PCI SSC Global Content Library is now available! The PCI SSC Global Content Library is home to hours of video content from our Global Community Events, covering topics on industry trends, strategies on best practices, and solutions for anyone within the payment ecosystem. Learn directly from Council executives and industry experts as they share their knowledge with you!

Pair of Galaxy App Store Bugs Offer Cyberattackers Mobile Device Access

The loneliness of leading a cybersecurity startup

Beavercreek, OH: $100,000 worth of Apple devices stolen at The Greene
Beavercreek Police is asking for the public's help identifying three people who broke into the Apple store at The Greene and stole more than $100,000 worth of items. The break-in took place around 5:40 a.m. Monday. The suspects filled bags with more than $100,000 worth of products before leaving in a dark-colored sedan - possibly a maroon Ford Fusion, according to police. When officers arrived, Apple employees activated tracking and alert features on the stolen devices. The majority of the items were left in Trotwood and recovered by Trotwood police, according to a press release.  daytondailynews.com


Shelby County, TN: 'Professional roaches': Businesses fed up with smash-and-grab crimes
It happens within minutes. Swarms of thieves use tools to bash into a store and quickly swipe thousands of dollars worth of merchandise, and business owners in Memphis are fed up. "They are professional roaches," said Dominique Worthen. He owns Snkrr Bar on Madison Avenue. "What we are known for is restoring sneakers," Worthen said. "Long story short, it's a sneaker laundry mat essentially." After opening in 2021, his services were soon sought-after. The business began booming and the crooks caught on. "I could not believe the first time we got broken into," he said. Or that it would happen two more times within months. The incidents were similar. A group of thieves bashed in the front glass of his business and climbed through. Worthen shared this security footage from one of the break-ins "Playing back the footage it seems like they were here for a lifetime. It's like oh my God," he said. In reality, it only took one minute and 25 seconds to clear the shelves. They grabbed every sneaker they could before bolting. wreg.com


Wilkes-Barre Township, PA: Police seek Suspects involved in Organized Retail Theft ring
Law enforcement agencies from multiple states are asking for the public's assistance in identifying two men suspected to be in an organized theft ring. Wilkes-Barre Township Police say that on Sunday around 8:15 PM, the suspects stole Tylenol, Claritin, Advil, and other medicines, cosmetics, and razor blades from Target in Wilkes-Barre Township and concealed them in plastic bins. Security intervened as the thieves attempted to leave the premises with the stolen merchandise. When confronted, police say the suspects abandoned the merchandise, fled from the store, and left the area. Investigation revealed that these two individuals were involved in similar thefts on the same day in Dickson City and Stroudsburg. fox56.com


Update: Wrentham, MA: Three Men Indicted for Stealing More Than $32,000 From Gucci Store at Wrentham Outlets
Three men have been indicted by a federal grand jury in Boston for stealing thousands of items from a high-end outlet store in Wrentham, Mass. Linworth Hayes Crawford III, 28; Ronald Patterson, 32; and Nathaniel Owens, 32, were indicted on conspiracy and transporting more than $5,000 in stolen goods. They will appear in federal court in Boston at a later date. The defendants, from Washington, D.C., were previously charged with a criminal complaint in December 2021. On the evening of Sept. 16, 2021, Crawford III, Patterson and Owens allegedly traveled from the Washington D.C. area to the Wrentham Village Premium Outlets in Massachusetts. It is alleged that, in the early morning hours of Sept. 17, 2021, the defendants and another unidentified individual smashed the front door of the Gucci outlet store, went inside and took approximately $32,000 in high-end fashion merchandise. The defendants then left the store and drove back to the Washington D.C. area.  golocalprov.com


Portland, OR: Suspect rappels into Woodland Walmart, scared off by alarm
Surveillance video captured a brazen break-in at a Walmart in Woodland, Wash. where a would-be burglar rappelled into the store on Christmas Day, authorities confirmed on Monday. The burglary attempt was cut short thanks to the store's security system, which scared the suspect off and alerted Woodland police. Officers responded to the Walmart, located on Dike Access Road, just before 8 a.m. on Dec. 25, 2022 and found a door unlocked. According to police, the suspect waited outside the store for a few hours before climbing onto the roof. Police say the man then opened a skylight and cut a hole in the security mesh, so he could lower himself inside using a grappling hook and rope. The man was allegedly trying to steal more than $5,000 worth of jewelry when the alarm went off. While trying to escape, the suspect dropped the stolen goods and subsequently left his backpack behind. No arrests have been made in connection to the attempted burglary.  koin.com


Memphis, TN: $7K diamond ring stolen from Pawn shop
A north Memphis pawn shop is making security changes after a man pretending to be a customer stole a $7,000 diamond and gold ring. Michael Anderson, manager of Best Pawn on Jackson, said the man came into the store wearing a medical masked and asked to look at a large men's ring. He said as soon as an employee took the ring out of a display case, the man took off with it.  wreg.com


Mt. Pleasant, SC: 2 arrested for attempted shoplifting with minor at Walmart
Two people were arrested after a report of shoplifting Sunday evening at a Walmart, according to the Mount Pleasant Police Department. Officers responded to the Walmart in Wando Crossing following a reported shoplifting. Arriving officers found three people loading a television, which they purchased, and baby formula into a Chrysler sedan, an incident report read. Two people were identified as Tyajah Rambert (23) and Co Sohn Javon Del Graham (23), while the other individual was identified as a missing juvenile out of Georgia. Officers asked if any of the three had a receipt for the baby formula they were seen loading into the vehicle; to which "Ms. Rambert then attempted to show me the "receipt" on her phone, but it was for a future purchase."  counton2.com


Mount Pocono, PA: Police arrested a woman they say stole over $1,200 from a Walmart in Monroe County and nearly assaulted an employee during the process

Barboursville, WV: Detectives identify woman wanted in $1,000 theft from Wal-Mart