Retailer IDs extensive gift card fraud, stops it cold

How a retailer's face match interrupted nationwide scam in just hours

Step one in any crisis: Stop the bleeding. Retailers lost $94.5 billion to thieves in 2021. Now they're stemming that figurative tide and preventing new wounds with FaceFirst's powerful investigative tools.

Here's how one retailer identified an extensive gift card scam and stopped it cold in less than three hours. A store manager notified the retailer's AP team that a masked man removed 50 Apple gift cards from the store without activating them. (This is the first step in a known, complex gift card fraud scheme.) The AP team ran a FaceFirst search. Even with the mask covering half of the man's face, the search quickly revealed that he repeated the gift card thefts in 21 stores.

As a result of the first search, the AP team noted the man's frequent accomplice. They ran a FaceFirst search on the accomplice and quickly found the second man had placed altered gift cards back on display in 61 of their stores. (This is the second step in the gift card fraud scheme.)

In less than three hours, the retailer identified the gift card theft pattern-at least 84 incidents with 2,000+ stolen and altered gift cards in the prior 14 days. The retailer temporarily removed all Apple gift cards from the stores and began working with the kiosk vendor to address the problem nationwide.

The retailer enrolled the two men in its custom FaceFirst database. FaceFirst alerted the retailer instantly when the men entered the stores again. The men returned three more times, determined that the Apple gift cards had been removed, and have not been back since.

FaceFirst gives retailers incredible investigative power that helps stop the bleeding and deters criminals so they're no longer harming the retailers' operations. FaceFirst's AI can search thousands of hours of CCTV security footage in seconds, turning a nearly impossible manual task for humans into instant, actionable intelligence. FaceFirst's fast, accurate search tool helps AP investigators build strong, detailed cases for coordination with law enforcement agencies and prosecutors.

FaceFirst's face matching technology alerts retailers instantly when known threats enter their stores, providing both life safety and loss prevention advantages. Calculate the risks of being caught unaware when a known offender enters your store. If you knew there was a proven solution to keep your valued customers and associates safer from violent offenders and prevent loss, would you implement it? The real risk is answering no. FaceFirst's solution is fast, accurate, and scalable-learn more today at facefirst.com.
 

The Impact of High Felony Thresholds of Shoplifting
CA has received most of the attention with Prop 47, but dozens of states have higher thresholds

38 states do not consider shoplifting a felony unless $1,000 or more is stolen

Organized crime rings, reduced penalties, and other factors contribute to the problem. Retailers and law enforcement have been seeking reforms to address this growing issue.

Surprisingly, the most significant increase occurred not during the pandemic but in 2019, with total losses from shoplifting reaching a staggering $61 billion, up from $50 billion the previous year. The lockdowns in 2020 and early 2021 temporarily moderated these losses, primarily due to store closures and reduced operating hours. However, as normal retail operations have resumed, crime rates have spiked once more.

California flash mob shoplifting

California's high-profile "flash mob" shoplifting incidents have drawn attention to Proposition 47, a 2014 state ballot initiative that raised the felony threshold for shoplifting from $450 to $950. The aftermath of its passage witnessed a sharp uptick in retail theft, often occurring in plain view of helpless store personnel and customers.

What has received less attention is the fact that California's Prop. 47 is not an isolated case. In the past decade, nearly half of all states have increased their felony shoplifting thresholds. Currently, 38 states do not consider shoplifting a felony unless $1,000 or more of merchandise is stolen.

Concerns and policies

Retailers also point to unintended consequences of government policies, including changes to bail laws that result in swift releases for those committing misdemeanor property crimes. Mask mandates enable criminals to conceal their identities while bans on single-use plastic bags facilitate theft. Retailers and law enforcement are calling for reforms such as amendments to shoplifting laws, tougher bail for repeat offenders, federal laws targeting interstate shoplifting gangs, and regulations to crack down on online sites selling stolen goods.

As the retail industry strives to return to pre-pandemic normality, the challenge remains whether this normality will also encompass flash mobs, smash-and-grab thefts, and the fear that has gripped both employees and customers. outlookindia.com


Philadelphia Retail Looting Continues

Philadelphia Rocked by Second Night of Widespread Looting
Multiple stores looted in Philadelphia overnight as police crack down
A day after looting in Philadelphia resulted in over 50 arrests and damage at stores in multiple neighborhoods, a few more stores were damaged in looting incidents Wednesday night and Thursday morning.

Philadelphia police say there were eight looting incidents reported overnight. That number includes a Fine Wine and Good Spirits liquor store in Lawndale and a beauty supply store in Mayfair. A nightclub near the liquor store in Lawndale was also damaged. The owner said windows were broken but nothing was taken.

Police say five of the looting incidents were in the Northeast Police Division, two were in the Northwest Police Division and one was in the East Police Division. Six arrests have been reported.

At Nat's Beauty Supply in Mayfair, surveillance video showed a group of people, mostly women, breaking through the glass front door and taking items including hair extensions, weaves and wigs. One of the women was wielding a tire iron.

The looting Tuesday and Wednesday nights followed a Philadelphia judge's dismissal of all charges, including a murder count, against former Philadelphia police officer Mark Dial. Dial was charged after surveillance and body camera videos showed him shooting Eddie Irizarry in Kensington.

The District Attorney's Office has refiled the charges. cbsnews.com


Liquor Store Closes All Philly Stores Amid Overnight Looting
Fine Wine & Good Spirits close all Philly stores after at least 18 robbed overnight

The store will reopen when it's safe to do so and after the damage is repaired, according to a Pennsylvania Liquor Control Board spokesperson

All Fine Wine & Good Spirits stores in Philadelphia, including one in Cheltenham Plaza in Montgomery County are closed Wednesday after at least 18 stores were robbed Tuesday night.

Overnight large crowds robbed multiple stores and damaged property across Philadelphia. Police said they have made at least 20 arrests and many businesses were affected.

"Fortunately, no employees were hurt, although some were understandably shaken." Pennsylvania Liquor Control Board Press Secretary Shawn Kelly said in a statement.

Kelly added the store is closed in the interest of the employee's safety and that the damage to the stores will be assessed. The stores will reopen when it's safe to do so and after the damage is repaired.

"We apologize to our customers for the inconvenience, and we appreciate their patience and understanding," Kelly said. nbcphiladelphia.com


   Related Philadelphia Crime Coverage

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The Ripple Effect of the ORC Crisis
Organized retail theft leads to higher prices in the long run

Theft and organized retail crime threaten the safety of its workers and customers.

Herb Weisbaum, contributing editor at Checkbook, said this type of crime affects you even if you never encounter a shoplifter. "It hurts legitimate retailers, legitimate businesses, and we, the customer, wind up paying for it in the long run in the former of higher prices," Weisbaum said.

He stated retail theft is also why people are seeing more items at their local stores kept under lock and key.

Retailers and law enforcement claimed retail theft is being driven by large, organized crime rings that have found a lucrative place to sell their pilfered products.

"When criminals steal stuff from a store or create counterfeit merchandise, they have to sell it somewhere," Weisbaum said. "That used to be on a street corner but now, thanks to the internet, they can sell it on online marketplaces and make a lot of money doing this."

He said the Prosecutors Alliance of California estimates more than $500 billion in stolen and counterfeit products are sold online worldwide annually.

The federal government is trying to crack down by passing new rules for those online marketplaces, including Amazon and eBay with the passage of the INFORM Consumer Act.

Weisbaum said consumers also need to be careful when they shop online.  mynorthwest.com


Fighting Theft in Hardware Stores
Locked and blocked: Power tool thefts thwarted

Security devices and trained staff can minimize power tool loss in retail hardware.

Robert Gann, general manager of Yeager's Ace Hardware, talks about loss prevention of his power tools. "Currently the main threats are pushouts and walkouts," Gann said.

"Large bags and totes are an increasing issue. We have a company policy to use 'aggressive hospitality' with customers acting off or with large totes and purses," he said.

The most effective anti-theft strategy of all might be staffing. He said you must staff the friendliest and most aggressive team members in the Tools and Outdoor Power areas of the store.

The GM deploys what he calls his "aggressive hospitality" strategy with suspicious shoppers in their stores. "Aggressive hospitality is just focusing on those suspicious shoppers, giving them assistance and staying on the same aisle as that person," he said.

From 5-7 p.m. his store has a company policy that the manager stays at the front end to help watch for walkouts and suspicious shoppers. He said that each morning, managers walk the lock-up/cable-up area to ensure no cuts to cables have been made. They also test alarms on power equipment to ensure they are audible.

The GM said to keep power tools out of reach and off lower overheads. They want customers to see their breath of inventory, but do not want it down low enough to get stolen.

Using photos to identify suspects is beneficial as well. hbsdealer.com


Washington ORC Task Force Ramps Up Hiring Efforts
Washington state task force targeting ORC looks to increase staff
There's a push by a state task force and a Seattle group to help retailers targeted by thieves and organized crime amid Target's announcement that it's closing two Seattle stores. The major retailer said theft and organized retail crime have threatened the safety of workers and customers, leading it to close its Ballard and U-District stores on Oct. 21.

To help with public safety, the nonprofit group U-District Partnership hires safety ambassadors to work with businesses and ultimately help these stores thrive. "If someone breaks in or comes in and steals something but they're a regular in the neighborhood, we can go meet up with (Seattle police) and figure out how we can intervene so they don't keep preying on local businesses," Blakeney said.

Mark Johnson with the Washington Retail Association said the city of Seattle's work with the King County prosecutor is one step in holding offenders accountable.

And at the state level, Washington Attorney General Bob Ferguson created a task force that's going after the biggest retail crime ring offenders, like a group recently caught stealing from high-end shops in Bellevue.

The state retail crime task force was funded in July, and the group is working to hire five people including investigators, data analysts and prosecutors by December. komonews.com


More Fallout from Target's Closure Announcement
Community reacts to closure announcement of 3 Portland Target stores
Target announced this week that it will close nine stores across four states, including three in Portland and shoppers are not thrilled. "We're making it very difficult for people who have a low income to find affordable retail and places to buy the items they need to live on, said local Hannah Wood.

Mayor Ted Wheeler weighed in saying ,"It is disheartening to learn that Target has made the decision to close stores here in Portland and in other major cities nationwide. My team and I continually work with local businesses, large and small, to find ways to support them as they navigate through unprecedented public safety and economic challenges."

"I'm sorry to see stores like Target moving out of Central City. But you know what, we're going to create a place where people want to come back and have their businesses, so maybe they'll come back because we'd like them back," said Oregon Governor Tina Kotek. kgw.com


   Related Target Closure Coverage

   Target crime closures shows retailers are fighting an uphill battle

   Target's NYC store closure should be 'wakeup call'

   Seattle businesses fears ongoing retail theft after Target announces closures


California Bans Firearms in Most Public Places
California governor signs gun control measures into law, including nation's first state tax on firearms and ammunition

New gun control laws in California ban firearms from most public places and raise taxes on gun sales

California Gov. Gavin Newsom signed a series of gun control measures into law Tuesday, impacting where Californians can legally carry weapons and levying the nation's first state tax on firearms and ammunition, prompting at least one lawsuit and likely future legal challenges from gun rights advocates.

The legislation places an 11% excise tax on firearms and ammunition sold by gun manufacturers and dealers in the state, which officials say will fund school safety and violence reduction measures.

The legislation also bans the concealed carrying of a gun in certain "sensitive places," including educational institutions, parks and sporting events, and sets the minimum age to obtain a concealed carry permit at 21. It also strengthens background checks for people seeking firearm permits.

In a news release about the new legislation, Newsom cited shootings across the country that left at least 104 people dead over the 72 hours prior to the signing. Nationwide there have been 519 mass shootings so far this year, according to the Gun Violence Archive, at least 36 of which were in California, including those in Monterey Park and Half Moon Bay, which left a total of 18 people dead. cnn.com


97% of San Francisco's Restaurants Hit by Constant Vandalism & Property Crime
"Death by a thousand cuts," says one restaurateur. "It has intensified as businesses are leaving, as businesses come under more hardship," Ferreira said. In the last six months, San Francisco's 311 call center received 10,000 reports of graffiti on commercial buildings and sidewalks.

Here are the major retailers that have closed Portland stores in the last year
Target recently announced that it would shutter three small-format stores in the city, joining companies like REI, Nike and Walmart in slating locations for closure.

Pence calls for expedited death penalty for perpetrators of mass shootings

Is Retail Undergoing a Cashier Revival?
Walmart is stripping some stores of self-checkout lanes & bringing back cashiers

The company is also testing varying degrees of hands-on employee assistance with self-service kiosks.

Walmart is pulling self-checkout lanes from at least three Albuquerque-area stores, requiring shoppers to have an employee ring up their orders.

Walmart declined to say whether similar redesigns were underway at other US locations, but the company did say there is no plan for the widespread removal of the kiosks. Walmart has previously said it would assign more employees to the self-checkout kiosks to offer hands-on assistance to customers - in some cases ringing up entire purchase for them.

When a separate Albuquerque Walmart closed in March, the company cited "underperformance," but several shoppers told Insider the location was routinely targeted by criminals. Police records showed more than 700 calls to the store or its vicinity in 2022 alone.

Walmart does not publicly disclose details about shoplifting, but dozens of employees and customers told Insider last year the company's reliance on self-checkout has led to an increase in theft.

Other companies that either engage more with customers at self-checkout or don't use the option much at all, such as Costco, Best Buy, Lowes's, and Tractor Supply, have reported relatively low incidents of missing inventory.

Self-checkout forces retailers to make a trade-off between labor-cost savings and the increased expense of theft, according to Matt Kelley, who was a senior manager of asset protection at Home Depot, and is now a loss-prevention expert at security-tech company LiveView Technologies.

"Inherently, that means there's going to be less eyes on a transaction," Kelly told Insider last year. "And there's going to be more of an opportunity for the dishonest people to be dishonest."  businessinsider.com


More Safety Violations & Fines For Dollar Tree
Dollar Tree to Pay $1M+ for Violations at Distribution Centers

Retailer ordered to pay civil penalties for alleged hazardous-waste/-material violations in California

Dollar Tree Inc. has reached a civil settlement over alleged hazardous- waste/-material violations at its distribution centers in San Joaquin and San Bernardino counties in California. The settlement was entered in conjunction with 48 district attorney and two city attorney offices from around the state.

Dollar Tree will pay the San Joaquin County District Attorney's Office a total of $800,000 in cost recovery and civil penalties and will pay the San Joaquin County Environmental Health Department a total of $220,000. Dollar Tree is also required to conduct multiple annual waste audits at each of its distribution centers in California over the next five years.

Additionally, the company must continue to implement a trash inspection program at every store, where employees are responsible for visually inspecting every bag, box or loose item for disposal to ensure that no unauthorized hazardous waste or medical waste is improperly disposed in solid-waste collection containers.

In other company news, Dollar Tree is also under investigation in Arkansas over whether members of Dollar Tree's board of directors caused or allowed Dollar Tree to operate in an unlawful or otherwise improper fashion, causing damage to Dollar Tree and its shareholders.

Meanwhile, in August of this year, Dollar Tree agreed to settle for $1.35 million with the U.S. Labor Department's Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) for unsafe working conditions.  progressivegrocer.com


Retail's Hottest Job?
Foot Locker, other brands hire chief customer officers

As shoppers pull back, brands including Foot Locker and CVS are trying to speak to customers in their language

It's a shift many retailers are making at a time of economic uncertainty and slumping sales, with the crucial holiday selling season about to start. Though they typically lead marketing and branding, chief customer officers also focus on the entire shopper path to purchase, including mapping out how marketing and product play a role in the ultimate decision to buy or not to buy. Experts say such a holistic strategy could strengthen a brand's relationship with the consumer, leading to more loyalty and repeat sales over time.

Since 2020, 18 retailers-including CVS, PetSmart, Victoria's Secret and Nordstrom-have added chief customer officers to their executive leadership teams, and more than half of the group came from marketing backgrounds, according to executive recruiting firm Spencer Stuart. Along with Foot Locker, Bath & Body Works also hired a chief customer officer this year, naming Maurice Cooper, most recently Target's senior VP of marketing for guest and brand experience, to the newly created role. Some of the retailers kept the CMO position even as they added the chief customer officer, such as PetSmart.

"What retailers and brands are getting clued into is they have to organize in a way that allows them to speak to the customer in their language versus whatever is easier functionally because that results in a siloed experience," said Waldmann.

The chief customer officer's retail rise is partly born of the pandemic, when changing consumer behavior resulted in more online shopping for everyday items. Now, retailers are seeking a way to meld online and in-person shopping, along with loyalty and membership programs that also touch on the consumer experience. adage.com
 

Progressive DA Candidates Could See Major PAC Donations Decrease
Soros Son's New Shakeup Puts $25 Billion Philanthropy on Hold
George Soros' $25 billion charity is on the cusp of a transformation that will reshape its operations, slash its staff and test whether his son Alex is ready to head one of the world's biggest and most influential philanthropies. Alex, who was named official successor to his billionaire father at the Open Society Foundations in June, has revealed only a few details of the overhaul, which will include a five-month freeze on new donations starting in October and a minimum 40% staff cut.

Any hint of what Alex and Malloch-Brown will do, or stop doing, sends ripples around the globe for causes ranging from social justice to democracy. Criteria for specific causes and grants are still to come.

Last year, Alex became president of Soros' Democracy PAC, which spends heavily to support liberal candidates and causes in US elections.  bloomberg.com


Mobile Device Network Platform & SIM Card Provider to Retailers Misled Investors
Former CEO & Former CFO Of Telecom Co. Charged With Massive $40M+ Accounting Fraud Scheme

Victor Bozzo, Former CEO and Former CCO, and Edward O'Donnell, Former CFO, Orchestrated a Scheme to Fraudulently Inflate the Reported Revenue of the Publicly Traded Telecom Company Pareteum Corporation

Southern District of New York unsealed an Indictment charging Victor Bozzo, former Chief Executive Officer and former Chief Commercial Officer of Pareteum Corporation, and EDWARD O'DONNELL, Pareteum's former Chief Financial Officer, with conspiracy, securities fraud, making false Securities and Exchange Commission ("SEC") filings, and improperly influencing the conduct of audits for their roles in a scheme to overstate Pareteum's revenue by tens of millions of dollars.

Also unsealed is the guilty plea of STANLEY STEFANSKI, Pareteum's former Controller. The defendants, and other senior executives at the company, engaged in a scheme to improperly and misleadingly recognize revenue at Pareteum, which owned and managed a mobile device network platform.

Pareteum's customers were cellular providers (retailers) that paid to use Pareteum's platform to monitor, meter, and bill their own individual customers, who were individual cellphone or connected device end users. Typically, before a customer could use Pareteum's platform, the customer and Pareteum would sign a Master Services Agreement, which set forth Pareteum's obligations to provide the customer with SIM cards that they provided cellphone users. Only after an actual cellphone user put the SIM card into their phone would the customer be required to pay Pareteum for the data usage.

Pareteum recognized revenue at the time a purchase order was signed for the full projected value of the purchase order. Pareteum improperly recognized and reported to the investing public more than $40 million of revenue that it should not have. justice.gov


Bankrupt Furniture Co. Runs Out of Cash - Supply Chain Frozen With $23.5M in Products Retailers Already Paid For?
Retailers Lose Millions in Bankrupt Furniture Co. Products Held Up Awaiting Delivery
Bankrupt furniture maker Mitchell Gold Co. has thousands of products - many already paid for by retail customers - tied up at its own and third-party distribution facilities awaiting delivery after the company ran out of cash to fund its operations. In all, Mitchell Gold Co. estimated it had $6.5 million worth of merchandise stuck at third-party facilities awaiting delivery and another $17 million at its own facilities, according to a mid-September filing. retaildive.com


Lululemon lays off 120 employees as it announces a Peloton partnership

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Online Fraudster With "Professional Runners" Ran Nationwide "Simple Refund" Scheme
DOJ: Dearborn, Michigan man indicted for conspiracy, wire, and mail fraud for nearly $4 million refund fraud on U.S. retailers

Operated "Simple Refunds" where participants pay a fee to get purchase price refunded by lying about status of merchandise

Seattle - A 25-year-old Dearborn, Michigan, man was arrested today on an indictment returned in the Western District of Washington for a fraud scheme damaging retailers across the country.

Sajed Al-Maarej allegedly operated "Simple Refunds" through the messaging service Telegram, where coconspirators were encouraged to purchase items from retailers Al-Maarej claimed he could defraud. Al-Maarej and his staff of "professional refunders" impersonated the purchaser and lied to the retailer about the status of the item to secure a refund for the purchaser, while permitting the purchaser to keep the ordered item. In Western Washington alone, one company lost $1.4 million to the fake refund scheme.

Between September 2020 and December 2022, Al-Maarej represented to prospective purchasers that they could buy high value goods and keep them, while falsely claiming to the merchant company that a refund was due. The end goal was for the purchaser to keep the product and get their money back. The purchaser then paid Al-Maarej 15-25% of the purchase price as his fee.

Al-Maarej engaged in fraudulent refunding activity as well, requesting more than $1 million in refunds from retailers throughout the country. In one instance, Al-Maarej obtained a refund for bulky tools, but he returned to the retailer an envelope filled with plastic toy frogs. He claimed that he personally obtained more than $70,000 in refunds from a Western Washington-based retailer. Al-Maarej boasted about his personal refunding achievements on Simple Refunds to lend credibility to his scheme and attract customers.

The Simple Refunds channel on Telegram amassed a following of more than 1,000 subscribers. Al-Maarej used a second channel to post information on successful refunds.

The total value of the fraudulent refunds through Simple Refunds and Al-Maarej's own conduct is approximately $3.9 million.

The indictment details how two Snohomish County residents ordered thousands of dollars of merchandise and conspired with Al-Maarej to get the payments refunded. Al-Maarej or others at his direction, allegedly impersonated the buyers, claimed the items had been "delivered not received" and got the purchase price refunded. The customers kept the items.

In May 2022, Al-Maarej deepened his fraud by allegedly offering a "mentorship" program where he would teach others to create their own refunding scams - he charged $6,000 for admission to the program. He boasted that students would "learn from the best in the game, from everything fraud related, to legit businesses and cleaning your money."

Conspiracy is punishable by up to five years in prison. Mail fraud and wire fraud are punishable by up to 20 years in prison.

The investigation is open and ongoing with the possibility of additional charges against other defendants. justice.gov


Three Online Fraudsters Get Prison for $1.9M Amazon Shipping/Refund Fraud
DOJ: Bridgeport Man Sentenced to Prison for Defrauding Amazon
RAJHNI YANKANA, 28, of Bridgeport, sentenced today by U.S. District in Hartford to five months of imprisonment, followed five months of home detention and three years of supervised release, for defrauding Amazon.

Yankana created multiple vendor accounts with Amazon allowing him to sell merchandise through the website on a third-party basis. He often opened the accounts using false names, email addresses and other identifying information. After setting up the accounts, Yankana represented to Amazon that he was shipping it valuable merchandise to be held for sale by the company. In reality, he would not ship the merchandise, and would later falsely claim that it had been lost, supporting his false claims with fabricated documents. Amazon sent Yankana a series of refunds for the purportedly lost merchandise.

Yankana defrauded Amazon of $210,836.97. Judge Thompson ordered him to pay full restitution.

Two other individuals involved in this scheme pleaded guilty to the same charge. On September 5, 2023, Oshane Stewart who defrauded Amazon of approximately $742,000, was sentenced to 18 months of imprisonment. Stewart's brother, Kenoy Stewart, who defrauded Amazon of more than $1 million gets nine months prison, three years supervised release. justice.gov


Four Telephone Scammers Used Target Stores Gift Cards to Fund & Launder Fraudulent Proceeds
DOJ: Three Individuals Convicted for Laundering Money Stolen from Scam Victims Through Gift Cards
A jury in Los Angeles convicted three individuals for their roles in laundering proceeds of large-scale consumer fraud schemes through gift card transactions. Blade Bai, Bowen Hu and Tairan Shi were convicted of conspiracy to launder proceeds of wire fraud. Bai was also convicted of a separate money laundering conspiracy count. A fourth defendant, Yan Fu, had previously pleaded guilty and was sentenced to 20 months in prison.

Telephone scammers, engaged in government-imposter scams and tech support, instructed victims to purchase gift cards from the retail store Target and provide the scammers with the account numbers and access codes listed on the gift cards. The defendants then distributed the numbers assigned to the gift cards to "runners," who used the funds on the cards at Target stores (primarily in Los Angeles and Orange counties) to purchase consumer electronics, other gift cards and other items. In one instance presented as evidence at trial, runners acting on behalf of the defendants redeemed gift cards that originated from a victim in Illinois approximately 13 minutes after the victim purchased the cards. Through the purchases and other transactions at multiple Target stores, the defendants and their co-conspirators sought to conceal the fact that the gift cards had been originally funded with fraudulent proceeds. justice.gov


Palmdale, CA: Smash-and-grab robbers storm Palmdale jewelry store
Security cameras captured the moment a group of smash-and-grab robbers escaped with over $15,000 worth of merchandise in Palmdale on Thursday. The owners of Kimberly's Jewelry located on the 440 block of E Palmdale Boulevard said the theft happened around 12:06 p.m. when three masked thieves stormed into the shop. Video shows one suspect immediately spraying the security guard with bear spray before directing the spray toward two other employees. A second suspect wielding a hammer focused on smashing the store's glass display cases. A third suspect followed closely behind and was seen grabbing all the jewelry and merchandise from the shattered display cases and throwing them into a large plastic bin.  ktla.com


Philadelphia, PA: Sporting Goods warehouse the target of Looters
Reports of looters taking over a Snipes Warehouse, which is a supply warehouse for Snipes sneaker stores around the area. Another just looted spot in NE Philadelphia on scene where truck trailer loaded with sneakers & shirts, jackets. At warehouse dock along State Road. "It may be a Snipes warehouse." sources tell me. "It appears they took all they could & left a lot behind.", said Steve Kelley of Fox 29.  fox29.com


Spokane, WA: Police Investigate Recent Theft Spree by Traveling Groups
The Spokane Police Department's SPEAR unit (Stolen Property Enforcement and Recovery) is investigating a recent increase in thefts committed by what appears to be several groups of travelers, many of Romani descent. These groups move through cities, committing crimes for several days before moving on. The crimes include selling fake gold, Buddhist Temple burglaries, and mass shoplifting by women and children. The most recent trend occurred in late September when a group of thieves stole more than $6,000 worth of Similac baby formula from multiple grocery stores in Kennewick, Spokane, Liberty Lake, Post Falls, and Coeur d'Alene. At times, the thieves have wiped out entire store shelves of their supply of baby formula. These groups are often large and use children and multiple people to distract employees. They often wear sandals, and the women wear long dresses. They tie duffel bags around their waists under their dresses, fill them with merchandise, and waddle out of the store.  bigcountrynewsconnection.com


Lincoln, NE: $20K worth of left shoes stolen from vintage clothing shop
Authorities are investigating the theft of $20,000 worth of the left shoes from a vintage designer clothing and sneaker shop in Nebraska. Surveillance video released by Lincoln Crime Stoppers shows one of three people slip through security bars into Exclusive Hype after smashing the store's window. They first tried to pull off the building's door with a vehicle but were unsuccessful, according to Lincoln Crime Stoppers. Officials said the trio was able to get away with $20,000 worth of the left shoes of sneaker pairs, as the right shoes are stored in another room of the building. The video also shows them stealing apparel from the store.  wyomingnewsnow.tv


Las Vegas, NV: Couple charged in connection with theft of designer items from Strip luxury stores
A Las Vegas couple has been charged with taking part in stealing thousands of dollars' worth of Dior, Versace, Ferragamo and other expensive designer merchandise from Saks Fifth Avenue and Sephora stores on the Strip from June to last week. Naisha Adams, 36, and Taurean Henderson, 38, were booked on Sept. 22 into the Clark County Detention Center following their arrest at Saks Fifth Avenue, 3200 Las Vegas Blvd. South, after allegedly trying to make off with nearly $2,300 in luxury products, according to the Metropolitan Police Department reported.  reviewjournal.com
 

NRF has declared Oct. 26 as Fight Retail Crime Day

 A day of action to unite the retail community to advocate
for solutions in combating organized retail crime.