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 10/23/20

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D&D Daily Survey: Election Violence & Protests
How are you preparing?

Given the current elective divisiveness coupled with the nation reeling from protests, rioting, and looting since George Floyd's death in Minneapolis and the COVID-19 lockdowns, restrictions and social isolation, law enforcement and intelligence agencies across the nation are preparing for protests and violence throughout the election process. Especially given the long, drawn out mail-in ballots that will reportedly take up to a week or more to determine the winner.

That being said, we wanted to provide the community with a public survey/benchmark that can be shared and hopefully provide value with your individual review and preparation process.

Please take 5 minutes and share your thoughts

So we can collect and present our community's public opinion.
Individual responses will not be published.


Click here to take the short survey


Retailers Prepare To Guard Stores Against Looting If Election Protests Erupt
After suffering damage and loss at the hands of looters during nationwide protests of police brutality and systemic racism this summer, retail owners want to be prepared for the next looming political flashpoint.

Store owners, especially those who sell apparel and other easily transportable merchandise, are exploring different security options in case of demonstrations surrounding Election Day, Reuters reports.

Store owners have been assessing options like
security guards, reinforced glass and roll-down metal doors. Some of those measures are already being set up or arranged to be deployed if and when tensions do flare.

The stores most directly affected by looters have been the ones already hit hard by the multiyear rise of e-commerce and the coronavirus-induced reticence to shop in person.
Foot Locker reported $18M of losses directly tied to "social unrest" in its August quarterly report, while luxury retailers like Louis Vuitton, Gucci and Nordstrom are still boarded up on Chicago's Magnificent Mile retail corridor, even though they remain open for business, Reuters reports.

Scaffolding company Starr Industries in New York, which built protection for the famed "glass cube" Apple Store on Fifth Avenue, has been hired to be on standby by multiple NYC retailers, Starr President Marian Bobelea told Reuters. Reinforced glassmakers have
been installing stronger windows in hundreds of stores across the country as well.

The
majority of businesses affected by rioters and looters were located in urban areas, whereas suburban retailers have been extending their businesses more and more into nearby parking lots to keep revenue flowing in during times of social distancing, The Wall Street Journal reports bisnow.com

Americans Are Frantically Buying Military Gear Before the Election
Conflict is on America's streets in 2020, and "tactical apparel" has become a lifestyle industry serving militarized law-enforcement agents and the freelance gunmen who emulate them. Less than two weeks before Election Day, orders are rolling in.

Since last year, online purchases have driven a 20-fold jump in sales of goods like the $220 CM-6M gas mask -- resistant to bean-bag rounds -- for Mira Safety of Austin, Texas.

"It doesn't matter who gets elected," founder Roman Zrazhevskiy said of his new customers. "They think that no matter who wins, Biden or Trump, there are going to be people who are upset about the result." bloomberg.com

LPRC CrimeScience Podcast on Election Violence Response & More
with Dr. Read Hayes, Tony D'Onofrio, Tom Meehan & Featured Guest Terrance Gainer

Special guest Terrance Gainer, founder of security and business development firm Terrance W. Gainer, LLC, joins the CrimeScience podcast to talk about the election outcome response, the substantial increase in murders and non-fatal shootings, data reporting, and police departments adaptations to increase public engagement & safety. Our co-hosts also discuss the pandemic, social media censoring algorithms, consumer perception of the new normal, holiday season predictions, and much more.

In 2014, the United States Senate appointed Chief Gainer as the 38th United States Senate Sergeant at Arms, a culmination of 11 years of Service on Capitol Hill as Sergeant at Arms and Chief of the United States Capitol Police.

 
Read more about Mr. Gainer's distinguished career and listen to the LPRC podcast episode here.

DOJ Funding for Real Time Crime Centers
Justice Department Announces $5.3M in Awards to Support Operation Legend

At a roundtable with law enforcement in Indianapolis Thursday, Attorney General William P. Barr announced that the Department of Justice's Office of Justice Programs (OJP) is making up to $5.3 million available in grants to support Operation Legend. Eight Legend cities - Kansas City, Mo., Albuquerque, Cleveland, Detroit, Memphis, Milwaukee, St. Louis, and Indianapolis - will be eligible for up to $500,000 in grant funding to support Real Time Crime Centers, which provide police with rapid intelligence and instant information to help identify emerging crime patterns. In addition, more than $1.3 million will fund special prosecutors who have been cross-designated to try federal firearms cases originating in Albuquerque, Memphis, St. Louis, and Kansas City, Mo.

Real Time Crime Centers are a considerable financial investment for any law enforcement agency. The funding being made available to each Legend city can assist police departments in purchasing critical equipment and paying for the overtime to keep these centers staffed around the clock. justice.gov

Las Vegas resorts increase security amid shootings, fights on the Strip
The pandemic isn't the only thing raising safety concerns among visitors to Las Vegas since Strip resorts began reopening in early June. Street fights, shootings and a stabbing - many caught on cellphone cameras and posted on social media - have resulted in beefed-up police patrols and the use of metal detectors and other security measures at resorts.

The violence is due in part to the pandemic and an increase in gang activity, according to law enforcement officials. "We are noticing that a good portion of our crime, particularly in the tourist corridor, is occurring from out-of-state visitors," Metro Police Capt. Dori Koren told Clark County commissioners earlier this month. "Particularly [with] the felonies, we're noticing an increase in gang members from other states." latimes.com

Waukegan, IL: Police Killing of Black Man Sets Off Protests in Illinois
The police in Waukegan, Ill., said Marcellis Stinnette, 19, was fatally shot Tuesday night while riding in a car that went into reverse toward a police officer who had been approaching during an investigation. On Thursday, demonstrators in Waukegan, a city of about 86,000, 42 miles north of Chicago, called for the Department of Justice to take over the investigation into the shooting, saying they did not trust the Illinois State Police to investigate the Waukegan police. nytimes.com

Bellevue, WA: 70 suspects in May looting spree referred for charges, but 6 still need ID

Ithaca, NY: Six arrested, pepper spray deployed at protest outside police headquarters

Denver: College student hit in face by 40mm round during police protests sues city

Minnesota: Security Firm Atlas Aegis LLC Sued Over Plans to Deploy Ex-Soldiers to Polls
 



COVID Update

US: Over 8.6M Cases - 228K Dead - 5.6M Recovered
Worldwide: Over 42.2M Cases - 1.1M Dead - 31.3M Recovered


Private Industry Security Guard Deaths: 203   Law Enforcement Officer Deaths: 127
*Red indicates change in total deaths


New cases hit three-month high as Covid-19 hospitalizations soar

Thirty-two states reported rising Covid-19 infections, according to data from Johns Hopkins University.

Thursday was the highest day for new infections since July 24 and the day with the fourth highest total ever, at 71,671, Johns Hopkins says.

More than 41,000 people were hospitalized across the country, according to the Covid Tracking Project. This is the highest level of nationwide hospitalizations since Aug 20. The number of people hospitalized has increased by 33% since the beginning of October, the CTP says.

Deaths are also creeping upward, with 856 on Thursday, Johns Hopkins says. The 7-day average of deaths continues to climb and is up to 763. That is the highest level of average weekly deaths in a month.

An updated model from the University of Washington's Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation projects more than 140,000 Americans will likely die from the virus in the next three months.

States will likely 'reimpose some social distancing mandates'

The institute says the "fall/winter surge has begun" -- just a couple weeks behind Europe -- and will intensify in November and December before reaching a peak in January.

"Many states will face enormous pressure on hospital capacity and will likely have to re-impose some social distancing mandates," IHME said. "The best strategy to delay re-imposition of mandates and the associated economic hardship is to expand mask use."

Oregon is the only state trending in the right direction, according to Johns Hopkins data, which also show:

At least eight states reported record-high hospitalizations Thursday: Kentucky, Nebraska, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, South Dakota, Wisconsin and Wyoming.

At least 12 states saw their highest seven-day averages of new daily cases: Alaska, Colorado, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Minnesota, Montana, Ohio, Oklahoma, Utah, and Wyoming.

And at least six states -- Colorado, Indiana, Montana, Ohio, Oklahoma and Utah -- reported their highest daily case counts.

Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker announced regional restrictions. New Orleans Mayor LaToya Cantrell said anyone not wearing a mask could get a $500 ticket. Utah announced additional efforts for more than 20 counties at high transmission risks. Those efforts include limiting casual social gatherings to 10 people. cnn.com

Virus spikes have officials looking to shore up hospitals
Hospitals across the United States are starting to buckle from a resurgence of COVID-19 cases, with several states setting records for the number of people hospitalized and leaders scrambling to find extra beds and staff. New highs in cases have been reported in states big and small - from Idaho to Ohio - in recent days. The rise in cases and hospitalizations was alarming to medical experts.

In some cases, spikes are happening as schools reopen and as Americans grow weary of wearing masks and practicing social distancing.  edmdigest.com

COVID-19 Forces Global Fingerprint Revenues to Drop 22% in 2020
In the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic, global biometric device revenues are expected to drop 22 percent to $6.6 billion, according to a recent report from global tech market advisory ABI Research. The entire biometrics market, however, will regain momentum in 2021 and is expected to reach approximately $40 billion in total revenues by 2025.

Not all is bleak, though. New use case scenarios have emerged, and certain technological trends have risen to the top of the implementation lists. For example, enterprise mobility and logical access control uses biometrics as part of multi-factor authentication (MFA) for remote workers. sdmmag.com

OSHA Criticized for Lax Regulation of Meatpacking in Pandemic
While the agency has announced initial penalties totaling over $1 million to dozens of health care facilities and nursing homes, it has announced fines for only two meatpacking plants for a total of less than $30,000. The meat industry has gotten the relatively light touch even as the virus has infected thousands of its workers - including more than 1,500 at the two facilities in question - and dozens have died. nytimes.com

FDA Approves Anti-Viral Drug Remdesivir as First Treatment for COVID-19

Texas woman died of COVID-19 on a Spirit Airlines flight while returning home from Las Vegas

U.S. airlines report a 70% hit to revenue last quarter


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'Inside Edition' Must-See
Man steals from San Francisco Walgreens during TV report on shoplifting


Walgreens closing half a dozen locations this year due to excessive theft

This video courtesy of Inside Edition shows a man just days ago, jumping over a counter at the store at a downtown San Francisco Walgreens store, and taking off from the store with stolen merchandise.

A crew from Inside Edition was at the store on Van Ness and Eddy for a story on rampant shoplifting at the location when it happened.

This Walgreens has been hit so many times, that Walgreens now plans to close the door for good on November 11. The store will be the third in San Francisco this year to close because of excessive shoplifting. kron4.com

Walmart Files Pre-Emptive Lawsuit Against Federal Government in Opioid Case
Walmart Inc. sued the federal government in an attempt to strike a pre-emptive blow against what it said is an impending opioid-related civil lawsuit from the Justice Department.

The retail giant said in a lawsuit filed Thursday that the Justice Department and Drug Enforcement Administration are seeking to scapegoat the company for the federal government's own regulatory and enforcement shortcomings in combating the opioid crisis. Walmart said the government is seeking steep financial penalties against the retailer for allegedly contributing to the opioid crisis by filling questionable prescriptions.

The suit names the department and Attorney General William Barr as defendants, as well as the DEA and its acting administrator, Timothy Shea. It is seeking a declaration from a federal judge that the government has no lawful basis for seeking civil damages from the company based on claims pharmacists filled valid prescriptions that they should have known raised red flags. wsj.com

AI Now Top of Mind for Most New Security Solutions
Security Industry Association Announces the 2021 Security Megatrends

Each year, the Security Industry Association (SIA) produces the Security Megatrends report, which is made available to SIA member companies and registered attendees of SNG, the security industry's executive conference. The Security Megatrends are the top forces at play in security, expected to have far-reaching impacts on businesses across the industry.

For the first time, artificial intelligence (AI) has been named the top Security Megatrend, rising from a position of being the second ranked Megatrend in 2020's report, and rising from the fifth-ranked position in 2019's report. Input from survey participants and from focus groups and interviews indicated that AI - along with AI variants such as machine learning, deep learning and artificial neural networks - were in the product roadmaps for nearly all security technology solutions.

The cybersecurity of physical security systems and solutions, which had held the top spot for the last two Security Megatrends reports, retained its influence, and was ranked second, behind AI. Given the impact of the pandemic, respondents' input also placed the trend of touchless/frictionless on the top 10 list of trends; the frictionless trend had previously been identified as a micro-trend. Also new to the 2021 ranking of trends was the trend of predictive data analytics, which would assist in providing meaningful insights into the volume of data that IoT devices and security and software systems can create, and the trend of responsive environments and intelligent spaces - indicating the application of technology solutions to automate and elevate environments such as homes, buildings and cities. securityindustry.org

The 2021 Security Megatrends are:

1. Artificial Intelligence
2. Cybersecurity of Physical Security
3. Predictive Data Analytics
4. Connectivity and the IoT of Everything
5. Cloud Computing


6. Touchless & Frictionless Solutions
7. Facial Recognition
8. Responsive Environments & Intelligent Spaces
9. Emphasis on Data Privacy
10. Move to Service Models

Colorado wildfire explodes in size and forces thousands to evacuate
A wildfire burning in Grand County, Colorado, has exploded from 19,000 acres to more than 125,000 on Thursday, forcing thousands of families to evacuate. The so-called East Troublesome Fire raced through the town of Grand Lake and into the western portion of Rocky Mountain National Park, which closed to visitors Thursday, CBS Denver reported.

Thick smoke and flames were closing in on homes and terrifying residents. Security video even captured the scene as flames overtook a home. It was not immediately clear how much damage the fire caused in the Grand Lake community. cbsnews.com

  Not just California: Colorado and other Western states suffering worst fires in modern history


Internet Tops Customer Service in Retail

American Customer Satisfaction Index (ACSI)
Special COVID-19 Retail Study 2020


Amazon Falters During COVID-19, While Costco, Etsy, and Nordstrom Take the Internet Retail Crown, ACSI Data Show

Four out of five retail industries the American Customer Satisfaction Index (ACSI®) measures - department and discount stores, specialty retail stores, supermarkets, and internet retailers - have seen customer satisfaction wane during the pandemic, according to the ACSI's special COVID-19 retail study based on surveys collected from April 1, 2020 to September 30, 2020.

Compared to ACSI's 2019-2020 Retail Report, internet retail takes the biggest hit during the pandemic, down 4.9% to an ACSI score of 77. Yet, it remains ahead of the other retail categories. Specialty retail stores (down 2.6%) and drug stores (unchanged) tie for second at 76, while department stores (down 1.3%) and supermarkets (down 3.8%) both score 75.

The good news is that many food retailers are winning at customer satisfaction, even during un unprecedented crisis.

"From the onset of COVID-19, consumer expectations of retailers took a massive hit," said David VanAmburg, Managing Director at the ACSI. "Customers braced for delayed packages, empty grocery store shelves, and hard-to-find name brands. Of course, just because they expected this, doesn't mean they were thrilled about it. As customer satisfaction slips, retailers must adapt to the new market. It's clear they have their work cut out for them."

L Brands narrowly edges out specialty retail competition

Costco's lead over department and discount stores shrinks

Trader Joe's and Wegmans stay atop suffering supermarket industry
 theacsi.org progressivegrocer.com

Moody's sees stability in retail going into 2021
Retail analysts with the ratings agency Moody's have raised their expectations for retail's performance, changing their industry outlook from negative to stable, according to a new report.

Now projecting 15% decline in operating profits, the analysts softened their estimates for the collective hit to retailers this year, after previously forecasting a drop of up to 30%. They expect operating profit to improve around 20% next year.

For both years, the analysts estimate sales growth of 3%-5%. "Despite this strong turnaround, we have stopped short of going positive because coronavirus outbreaks continue, the economy is in recession and consumers remain stressed," the analysts added. retaildive.com

Gap Inc. exiting malls, to shutter 350 stores by 2024
The San Francisco-based retailer, which was for decades a fixture at shopping malls around the country, said Thursday that it will be closing 220 of its namesake Gap stores - or one-third of its store base - by early 2024. That will result in 80% of its remaining Gap stores being in off-mall locations.

As part of its restructuring, Gap Inc. said it also plans to close 130 of its Banana Republic stores in North America in three years.

The announcement made at a Gap Inc. investor meeting detailed a three-year plan that calls for closing what amounts to 30% of the company's Gap and Banana Republic stores in North America and focusing on outlets and e-commerce business. apnews.com

Dollar General at bottom of the employee pay list
Dollar General employees are paid an average of $9.68 an hour. Walmart, by comparison, pays an average of $13.08 for an hour's worth of work, according to a study of 25 big retail industry employers by Payscale. Rival Dollar Tree, which also owns Family Dollar, pays its workers an average of $10 an hour. businessinsider.com

Layoffs Hitting the North Pole Too
Santa is skipping Macy's for the first time in 159 years

There will be no miracle on 34th Street this year. Santa Claus won't be visiting any Macy's stores in 2020, ending a 159-year holiday season tradition. The department store's tradition started in 1861, but Santa meet-and-greets won't be happening this year because of concerns about the coronavirus pandemic. Instead, Macy's is creating an interactive virtual experience. cnn.com

Coresight Research
Retail Store Tracker Week 43

8,022 2020 YTD Store Closures
3,382 202 YTD Store Openings


Haunted Houses, Bingo Games, Covid-19 Testing.
Parking Lots See More Action Than Adjoining Shops.


People are shopping differently in this recession

American Express Sees Higher Consumer Retail Spending
 



Swing 2020 Has Gone Virtual!
The LPF Announces Bob MacLea Scholarship Opportunities

Although 2020 has been a challenging year and many of our industry's conferences have been cancelled, the Loss Prevention Foundation and our valued solution provider partners feel like there hasn't been a time where we needed to offer educational scholarships more. As such, and in the spirit of supporting our industry and its professionals, the Loss Prevention Foundation is proud to announce we will still be giving away Bob MacLea LPQ and LPC Course Scholarships in 2020. Thanks to the Swing for Certification sponsors, we will be accepting Bob MacLea Scholarship Applications now through the end of October. We will make the announcement for the winners the first week of November. Apply Now
 


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"The cybersecurity market is failing because the technology isn't as effective
as it needs to be."
Cybersecurity Market - The New 'Market for Lemons'

Security Experts Alarmed by 'Broken' Cyber Market
Vendor bombast, overwhelmed buyers, murky lines of responsibility and the speed of change raise doubts on the strength of cyber defenses.

Product hype and a lack of oversight from senior executives have created a "broken" market in cybersecurity technology, experts say, with urgent action needed from both vendors and customers.

Bombarded with pitches from a raft of new as well as established cybersecurity vendors, chief information security officers often have a difficult time assessing whether technology will actually do what it promises until it is put into operation, said Laura Deaner, CISO at financial-data company S&P Global Inc.

"I shouldn't have to say my fingers are crossed when I'm implementing a technology-that is proof that the market is broken," Ms. Deaner said, speaking on a
virtual panel hosted Wednesday by Debate Security, a research group formed by a number of security vendors.

Keeping up with hackers requires cybersecurity vendors to update technology frequently, but this can stymie CISOs, who often don't have enough information or resources to properly size up products, she said.

Debate Security groups research paper & video
'Watch the discussion'

Cybersecurity Technology Efficacy: Is cybersecurity the new 'market for lemons'?

Fixing the market involves better conversations between CISOs and boards, and could include the creation of independent assessment organizations or certification bodies to analyze vendor offerings, said S&P's Ms. Deaner. Such assessments would include, for instance, testing platforms against common attack methods, and having vendors explain in detail how their products work.

Relying on the industry to fix itself might not work, he said. Other avenues, such as legal protections and warranties against products that don't work might be a way to force vendors to live up to their claims. wsj.com wsj.com debatesecurity.com

The CISO's Quandary - The New Remote-First Era & Remote Access
CISOs split on how to enable remote work
CISOs are conflicted about how their companies can best reposition themselves to address the sudden and rapid shift to remote work caused by the pandemic, Hysolate research reveals.

The story emerging from the data in the study is clear:

● COVID-19 has accelerated the arrival of the remote-first era.

● Legacy remote access solutions such as virtual desktop infrastructure (VDI), desktop-as-a-service (DaaS), and virtual private networks (VPN), among others, leave much to be desired in the eyes of CISOs and are not well suited to handle many of the new demands of the remote-first era.

● Half of CISOs believe that security measures are impacting productivity when scaling remote-first policies.

● Bring-your-own-PC (BYOPC) policies further complicate organizations' approaches to secure remote access.

Remote work becoming a permanent workflow

Beyond the overwhelming consensus that work-from-home is here to stay (87 percent of respondents believe remote work has become a permanent workflow in their companies' operations), the study reveals that there is no singular best practice or market-leading approach to enabling workers in the remote-first era.

There is no prevailing solution in place to provide secure remote access to corporate assets: helpnetsecurity.com

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Govt's Disbursing Digital Currencies Quickly
PayPal to Allow Cryptocurrencies
Customers will be able to buy, sell, and hold virtual coins, including bitcoin, using the company's online wallets.

PayPal will begin allowing cryptocurrencies for use by U.S. account holders in the coming weeks as part of a migration toward digital payments,
driven by the COVID-19 pandemic. In a statement, the company said there has been increased interest in digital currencies from central banks and consumers during the public health crisis.

"We are working with central banks and thinking of all forms of digital currencies and how PayPal can play a role," chief executive Dan Schulman said.
He added that digital currencies could help governments disburse funds quickly to individuals.

Central banks representing
20% of the global population are expected to issue digital currencies in the next three years. cfo.com

 


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Amazon Employees Demand Paid Day Off to Vote

Amazon workers threaten to shut down warehouses if employees don't
get a day off to vote
Workers at Amazon are calling on groups around the country to help shut down Amazon warehouses temporarily
on Halloween if the company does not give all its employees a paid day off to vote.

The move is an escalation of the internal pressure being put on executives at the company, the country's second-largest private employer.

In the past week,
more than 6,500 Amazon corporate and tech workers have supported a proposal for all workers to get a paid day off to vote. Others have written to Jeff Bezos, the company's founder and chief executive.

The organizing is led by
Amazon Employees for Climate Justice, which has also mobilized thousands of corporate employees over the past year and a half to push the company to address its climate impact. nytimes.com

UK Swamped with Online Fraud
More than 40,000 cases of online shopping fraud in 2020 so far
Incidences of online shopping and auction fraud increased by over a third (37%) during the first half of 2020, reaching
40,900 cases.

This was
an increase of 11,000 reports on the 29,900 for the same period last year, according to personal finance comparison site finder.com , who commissioned and analysed a freedom of information request to Action Fraud.

Online shopping and auction fraud is when a product is advertised in a misrepresenting manner on an online shop or auction site. It also includes when customers who buy products through these sites do not receive the items they purchased.

The FOI data revealed that
a total of £29.7 million was lost between January and June this year, meaning that online shopping and auction fraud now represent two thirds (65%) of all consumer fraud reports in 2020. A lot of the cases appear to involve big-ticket items, with the average loss per case being £726. mylondon.news

Gap shares hit 52-week high on plans to close stores, focus on e-commerce and off-mall retail


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Cargo Fraud - Did Your Carriers Get Hit?
$4.7 Million in Fraudulent Claims - 32 Charges/Guilty Pleas - 30 Incidents

Four More Indicted in Multi-Million Dollar Staged Accidents Scam in Louisiana

       

Four others have been indicted in connection with a sweeping federal investigation into staged accidents with commercial vehicles in the New Orleans area, amounting to 32 charged or pleading guilty in local accident scams since last year.

The four new defendants were charged Oct. 16 with a three-count federal indictment - one count of conspiracy to commit mail fraud and two counts of mail fraud. If convicted, they face a maximum penalty of five years for count one and 20 years for counts two and three. After their release from prison, each of the participants face a $250,000 fine for each count and up to five years supervised released.

The indictment alleges that the four defendants intentionally used a vehicle to stage an accident in October 2015 with a tractor-trailer owned by C.R. England in order to defraud the carrier and its insurance companies. In total, England and its insurance company in 2019 paid approximately $4.7 million for the fraudulent claims associated with the staged accident. C.R. England ranks No. 26 on the Transport Topics Top 100 list of the largest for-hire carriers in North America.

Those charged in the federal indictment - Anthony Robinson, 66; Audrey Harris, 53; Jerry Schaffer, 65; and Keishira Robinson, 25 - are all from New Orleans. The indictment alleges that a co-conspirator intentionally struck the 18-wheeler and then was picked up from the collision site by Damian Labeaud, who pleaded guilty to a previous indictment charging him with being a ringleader of a previous scheme with seven others involved in staging truck and automobile accidents. Robinson, who had been in Labeaud's vehicle, then got behind the wheel of his own vehicle to make it appear that he had been driving at the time of the staged accident, according to the indictment.

The passengers of the staging vehicle were referred to an unnamed attorney who paid Labeaud and the co-conspirator to stage accidents.
All of the defendants were treated by doctors and health care providers at the direction of their attorneys, and Robinson, Harris and Schaffer underwent surgeries as part of the fraudulent scheme.

The current and prior indictments have referred to at least three unnamed attorneys, plus doctors "known to the grand jury."
However, none of the attorneys or doctors accused of participating in the scams have yet been charged.

Trucking companies that travel through the New Orleans area have since been alerted to the scams by attorneys with trucking companies and insurance clients who were victims in the scheme.
In 2019, the attorneys identified similarities among a string of at least 30 cases, all in the New Orleans area.  justice.gov freightwaves.com

DOJ announces more guilty pleas: Three More Plead Guilty To Conspiring To Stage Automobile Accidents In Order To Defraud Insurance and Trucking Companies

Fowlerville, MI: Former Employee buys a Boat, Cars and electronics with $115,000 of stolen Lottery Tickets
Christopher Bandy purchased five vehicles, TVs and a speed boat with the winnings from stolen lottery tickets, his former girlfriend, Sabrina Maples testified earlier this year. On Friday,
Bandy was sentenced to at least eight years in prison after pleading no contest to embezzlement between $50,000 and $100,000 last month. He was charged in January with embezzlement of $100,000 or more after Dino Cascardo, owner of Buddy's Mini Mart , noticed he was missing approximately $115,000 in lottery sales. Bandy, 43, was an employee at the convenience store when the tickets were stolen.  livingstondaily.com

Sydney, Australia: Duo charged in $100K baby formula theft ring
Two men have been charged and 1350 tins of baby formula seized in connection with an alleged syndicate shoplifting baby formula in NSW for export overseas. A was arrested on Thursday morning in a shopping centre car park in Auburn, with police later seizing 350 tins of baby formula, 42 bottles of vitamins and 47 tubs of menthol rub from his Greystanes home. Police believe the items were stolen. A raid on a Homebush storage facility later on Thursday allegedly uncovered an additional 1000 tins of baby formula, 1000 bottles of vitamins, 300 tubs of pawpaw cream and 100 electric toothbrushes. A 40-year-old man was arrested at the facility. The items seized at the house and storage facility are valued at about $100,000, police say. adelaidenow.com.au

Culver City, CA: Thief Cuts Hole in Roof of Camera Store and Steals $100K Worth of Gear

Marin County, CA: Deputies arrest suspect in Walgreens robbery, seize $4k of Xanax

Stamford, CT: Police release photos in Stamford, Norwalk Home Depot thefts


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Shootings & Deaths

Update: Bear, DE: Man fatally shot in a Wawa parking lot has been identified
A 24-year-old man shot outside a Bear Wawa convenience store late Tuesday has died, Delaware State Police said. The victim has been identified by police as Daniel Haye of Wilmington. The shooting occurred just before midnight after Haye got into an altercation in the parking lot of the Wawa store, located at 1100 Pulaski Highway. delawareonline.com


Detroit, MI: 2 suspects shot by marijuana dispensary workers during attempted robbery

 



Robberies, Incidents & Thefts

Oakland, CA: Armed Suspect Surrenders to Police Following Hourslong Standoff;
An employee who was taken hostage was later released unharmed
An armed suspect who barricaded himself inside a store in East Oakland surrendered to police Thursday following an hourslong standoff.
The man was wanted in connection to a double homicide in Oakland, police said. Store employees at WSS (a Sneaker/ Shoe Store) were able to make it out of the building, except one worker who was taken hostage. The hostage was an employee at a shoe store at a strip mall on High Street, near Foothill Boulevard. Police evacuated the shopping center, which includes a Cardenas food market and told people who live nearby to shelter in place. Sometime in the afternoon, police said the gunman shot off a round inside the store, but did not strike anyone. The employee was released unharmed just before 2 p.m. thanks to a team of Oakland Police Department negotiators who made contact with the armed suspect. Police said the incident began around 11:15 a.m. when officers attempted to arrest the suspect in the area, but the suspect then ran into a building. nbcbayarea.com

Tinley Park, IL: Police officer dragged from SUV while trying to arrest car burglary suspects outside Best Buy
Tinley Park police have released surveillance images of two burglary suspects after an officer was injured trying to apprehend them, police said. Police said an officer responded to a report of a burglary in a vehicle parked outside a business in the 7200-block of West 191st Street last Saturday. A caller told police someone in a white Dodge Durango with Texas license plates got out and entered an unlocked BMW. The caller told police the man dug through the car before getting back in the Durango. The caller said they located the owner of the BMW, who confirmed items were taken.

The officer and caller then found the Durango unoccupied at a Best Buy, police said. Two men then exited the Best Buy and police said they immediately got into the Durango. The officer tried to open the driver's side door and reached to grab the officer when police said the driver sped away. The officer was clinging to the SUV as police said the driver sped through a stop sign before losing control and crashing into a tree. The suspects were able to escape and are not in custody. The officer was transported to Silver Cross Hospital with several injuries, police said.
abc7chicago.com

Madison County, IL: Two men charged in string of Walgreens Burglaries

Woodway, TX: Suspect in H-E-B robberies arrested in Tarrant County

Bakersfield, CA: Arson suspected in thrift store fire; Investigators believe the fire started outside the business

Cleveland, OH: Man attacked Burger King employee who told him to wear mask

Poplar Bluff, MO: 3 people accused of shoplifting ay Walmart within 800 ft. of police department

 



Counterfeit

Scranton, PA: Two New York Individuals Indicted For Counterfeit Currency
The United States Attorney's Office for the Middle District of Pennsylvania announced that on September 29, 2020, Courtney Murray, age 22, of Slingerlands, New York, and Rashaun Ferguson, age 26, of Flushing, New York, were indicted by a federal grand jury for passing counterfeit U.S. currency. The indictment was unsealed following the arrests of the defendants. According to United States Attorney David J. Freed, the indictment alleges that Murray and Ferguson conspired to pass counterfeit currency between September 2019 and April 2020.
They also are charged with multiple counts of passing approximately $14,000 in counterfeited Federal Reserve Notes in the denomination of $20, in Luzerne and York Counties, New Jersey, New York, and Maryland.  justice.gov

Peoria, IL: Woman Sentenced to Prison for $100K Counterfeit Check Scheme
U.S. District Judge James E. Shadid today sentenced an Urbana, Ill., woman, Stephanie Lemons, 43, of the 1200 block of South Vine Street, to serve 18 months in prison for engaging in a counterfeit check scheme that resulted in an estimated loss of more than $100,000. Lemons was ordered to report to the federal Bureau of Prisons on March 2, 2021, to begin serving her sentence. Following her sentence, Lemons was ordered to serve two years of supervised release.

On Feb. 6, 2020, Lemons entered pleas of guilty to conspiracy and 19 counts of fraud as charged in the indictment. Lemons' co-defendant, Tommie Slayton, of Champaign, Ill. is scheduled for a change of plea hearing and sentencing on Dec. 1, 2020. Lemons and Slayton were charged with conspiring together and with others to
engage in a scheme to pass more than 120 counterfeit checks from July through December 2018. As a result of the scheme, counterfeit checks were presented at Walmart Stores in Champaign and Bloomington, Ill., and forged checks at Heartland Bank of Champaign, Ill. At the sentencing hearing, the court found that Lemons purchased specialized equipment, including a printer, paper and ink, designed to print payroll checks, as an investment in the "infrastructure of her enterprise" to defraud others.  justice.gov

 



Cargo Theft

UK: Gangs of thieves targeted medical supplies to exploit shortages
during the Pandemic
Cargo thefts this year have cost UK companies about $78 Million. Criminals have stolen from warehouses holding personal protective equipment then distributed the stock on black market networks. Analysis by the British Standards Institution, seen exclusively by the Daily Express, shows they have created fake certificates to convince frontline workers to buy goods, or used online marketplaces to rake in vast profits. Between March and October 11 percent of 2,239 cargo thefts were of medical devices and supplies, such as masks, aprons or other pieces of protective equipment. Over the same period last year, fewer than one per cent of cargo thefts were of such items. express.co.uk


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AT&T - Edina, MN - Burglary
C-Store - Lincoln, NE - Armed Robbery
C-Store - Austin, TX - Armed Robbery
C-Store - Hot Springs, AR - Armed Robbery
C-Store - Gilroy, CA - Robbery
CVS - Tulsa, OK - Armed Robbery
CVS - Champaign, IL - Armed Robbery
Camera - Culver City, CA - Burglary
Dollar General - Lubbock, TX - Armed Robbery
Family Farm & Home - Benton Harbor, MI - Armed Robbery
Gas Station - Gilroy, CA - Robbery
Gas Station - Baton Rouge, LA- Robbery
Gas Station - Redding, CA - Armed Robbery
Home Depot - Stamford, CT - Robbery
Jewelry - Commerce, GA - Robbery
Jewelry - Danbury, CT - Robbery
Jewelry - Evergreen Park, IL - Robbery
Jewelry - Palm Coast, FL - Robbery
Liquor - Fairfield, CT - Armed Robbery
Marijuana - Detroit, MI - Robbery
Rite Aid - Elkton, MD - Armed Robbery
Walgreens - Marion County, CA - Robbery
7-Eleven - Dallas, TX - Armed Robbery/ clerk wounded
7-Eleven - Tampa, FL - Armed Robbery

 

Daily Totals:
• 22 robberies
• 2 burglaries
• 1 shooting
• 0 killed


 

Weekly Totals:
• 75 robberies
• 30 burglaries
• 2 shootings
• 1 killed



Click to enlarge map

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Casey Blythe named Loss Prevention Manager for Amazon


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Division Safety and Loss Prevention Manager
Atlanta, GA
- posted
October 5
Under the guidance of the Directors of Loss Prevention (LP) and Health, Safety and Environment (HSE), the Loss Prevention & Safety Manager is responsible for overseeing and championing initiatives and company programs, processes and controls that builds a culture around continuous improvement in safety/environment incidents, loss prevention, and security outcomes...



Regional Asset Protection Manager
Emeryville, CA
- posted October 2
The Regional Asset Protection and Safety Manager will lead the Region in shrink reduction and profit maximization efforts. The position will proactively seek to bring economic value to the company, promoting profitable sales and world class customer service while ensuring a safe place to work and shop...



Asset & Profit Protection Investigations Analyst
San Francisco, CA - posted September 24
You should have strong analytical skills, be a quick learner, and drive to innovate with both technology and processes. They will be personable, open to learning, collaborating with others, and apt to saying "yes" or "I'll find a way", rather than "no" or "that's impossible"...



Area Loss Prevention Manager
Pittsburgh, PA - posted September 10
Our Area Loss Prevention Managers ensure safe and secure stores through the objective identification of loss and risk opportunities. Our Area Loss Prevention Managers plan and prioritize to provide an optimal customer experience to their portfolio of stores. They thrive on supporting and building high performance teams that execute with excellence...



Customer Success Specialists
Multiple Locations - posted October 9
The role of the Customer Success Specialist is to engage, empower, and excite our community. As a Customer Success Specialist, your primary responsibility is to ensure both retailers and law enforcement, who make up our community, have great experiences and achieve real crime reduction outcomes from using our platform.
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Sales Representatives
NuTech National - posted October 13
NuTech National, an established and rapidly growing 40+ year electronic security company is expanding our National Sales Team. Seeking motivated, driven and successful sales reps to expand our national retail and governmental vertical markets. Top pay, benefits and signing bonus available. Please apply to melissa@nutechnational.com


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Being too close to the trees to see the forest is an expression that also fits not appreciating the role you play on your own team. With the needs of the day seemingly always taking priority, it's difficult for some to step back and truly see the value you can add to your own team. Realizing it and accepting the responsibility as a team member is half the battle. But doing something with it and truly adding value is what helps the team win the game. Every group, every department is in fact a team and every member plays a vital role towards the success and the survival of that team. That's why that old expression - One for all and all for one - took such a hold in literature. Because it is that simple. The hard part is taking responsibility for it.

Just a Thought,
Gus

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