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3/28/23

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Tim Mottershead promoted to Senior Manager - Field Asset Protection for DSW Designer Shoe Warehouse

Tim has been with DSW for nearly four years, starting with the company in 2019 as Regional Asset Protection Manager - Northeast. Before his promotion to Senior Manager - Field Asset Protection, he served as Senior Manager - Regional Asset Protection for a year. Prior to DSW, he held AP/LP roles with Target, Burlington Stores, and Macy's. Congratulations, Tim!

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The U.S. Crime Surge
The Retail Impact

Another Theft-Plagued Walmart Closing Its Doors
15 Walmart locations in 11 states slated for closure in 2023

Walmart closing an Everett store that locals say was plagued by theft

Walmart is closing an underperforming store in Everett that some neighboring businesses say has been plagued by theft.

Walmart said in a statement Friday the store is being shut down after the retailer determined it “hasn’t performed as well as we hoped.” The retailer said the store’s 198 employees can transfer to other Walmart locations, including a Supercenter at 1605 S.E. Everett Mall Way and five other stores in Snohomish County. Walmart has 65 locations in Washington.

But several businesses near the closing store said shoplifting has become a serious problem, including at Walmart.

“From what I’ve heard from Walmart staff, to me, that’s the cause of the closure,” said Dennis Matheson, owner of nearby Chuck’s Chevron Services Center. “You know, when you go over [to Walmart] and the socks are under lock and key, it’s very evident” theft is a problem.

Opened in 2006, the Highway 99 Walmart is one of 15 Walmarts in 11 states Walmart reportedly slated for closure in 2023, according to Business Insider.

Walmart said “there is no single cause” for any store closure and that decisions are based on “current and projected financial performance, location, population, customer needs, and the proximity of other nearby stores.”

But top company officials have also acknowledged that shoplifting is a rising problem for Walmart nationally and could lead to closures if left unchecked.

Theft and other property crime in Everett in 2022 was up 17% from 2019, but down by 17% from 2016, according to estimates presented in August to the City Council by police Chief Dan Templeman. In Seattle, larceny and theft in 2022 were up 10% from 2019 and up 5% from 2016, according to Seattle Police Department data. seattletimes.com

Minnesota Businesses & Legislators Put Forward ORC Legislation
Legislation brought forward concerning organized retail crime in Minnesota
A growing concern about organized retail crime was addressed in a news conference on Monday afternoon held by the Minnesota Retailers Association.

Various partners and legislators, including Senator Ron Latz, Representative Zack Stephenson, and Bruce Nustad, president of the Minnesota Retailers Association, talked about the proposed legislation at the Minnesota State Capitol.

Nustad commented on the nature of the bills proposed by Sen. Latz and Rep. Stephenson.

“They are bills to define organized retail crime in statute. 34 other states actually define organized retail crime, and quite frankly, the benefit of that is to tell those career criminals that their business is not welcome here.”

Authorities say organized retail crime is separate from ordinary shoplifting and involves people working together in crime rings and stealing large amounts of merchandise from retail stores in Minnesota and across the country.

Officials add many of these stolen items then get converted into cash through a fencing operation. The suggested legislation would differentiate this operation from petty theft and help loss prevention professionals, law enforcement, and prosecutors address this issue. kstp.com

RELATED: Legislators, business owners address growing retail crime

U.S. Mass Shooting Epidemic Back in the News
Guns kill 120 Americans every day - Over 43K per year

America’s unique, enduring gun problem, explained

The factors that lead to tragedies like Covenant School are deeply ingrained in US politics, culture, and law.

A shooter armed with two assault-style rifles and a handgun killed at least three children and three adults Monday at Covenant School in Nashville, Tennessee, before police shot and killed her.

The Covenant School incident is America’s 129th such mass shooting — an incident during which four or more people are shot, as defined by the Gun Violence Archive — since the beginning of 2023. It follows mass shootings at Michigan State University, two mushroom farms in Half Moon Bay, California, and at a ballroom dance studio in Monterey Park, California.

These shootings come in the wake of numerous others last year including at a Walmart in Chesapeake, Virginia; at an LGBTQ nightclub in Colorado Springs, Colorado; on a school bus allegedly targeting members of the University of Virginia football team; a Fourth of July parade in Highland Park, Illinois; at a hospital in Tulsa, Oklahoma; at an elementary school in Uvalde, Texas; and at a supermarket in Buffalo, New York.

No other high-income country has suffered such a high death toll from gun violence. Every day, 120 Americans die at the end of a gun, including suicides and homicides, an average of 43,475 per year. Since 2009, there has been an annual average of 19 shootings in which at least four people are killed. The US gun homicide rate is as much as 26 times that of other high-income countries; its gun suicide rate is nearly 12 times higher.

What is unique is the US’s expansive view of civilian gun ownership, ingrained in politics, in culture, and in the law since the nation’s founding, and a national political process that has so far proved incapable of changing that norm.

Last year, Congress reached a deal on limited gun reforms for the first time in nearly 30 years. But the recent shootings underscore why narrow reform won’t stop mass shootings — and just how embedded gun violence is in the US. vox.com

Click here for more gun violence data

Many Americans Fearful of Shopping Amid Shooting Surge
How Gun Violence and Mass Shootings Have Changed How Americans Live

"I’m a veteran and have served in combat. I felt safer in combat than I do going to the grocery store."

Michelle Allen is still learning how to cope nearly three years after her only child, Nicholas Isaac, 23, was shot and killed inside a Brooklyn bike store. Her story is one of more than 600 responses we received after asking Times readers whether the threat of gun violence has affected their mental state or the way they lead their lives.

Some readers said the sheer number of shootings in America has left them numb or resigned. A more sizable group described feeling frustrated, angry and helpless. Some said they now avoid crowded events and public transportation, scan public venues for nearby escape routes or stay at home more often. A handful said they had moved to different cities or even to another country to try to escape the threat.

In 2021, homicides and suicides involving guns reached their highest rates in three decades. Mass shootings, though only a fraction of the number of gun murders nationwide, are also on the rise. And guns are now the No. 1 cause of death among American children and teens.

One respondent to the New York Times wrote, "I’m a veteran and have served in combat. I felt safer in combat than I do going to the grocery store."

"I am very conscious in stores," another respondent said.

"I pray for safety for my sons, my family and myself. I can only pray they come home at night and are not victims of a shooter at the grocery store, in their school classroom, driving to the movies, sitting in the car at the stoplight," another respondent said. nytimes.com

'Aren't you guys tired of this?'
Woman who survived Highland Park shooting makes plea in Nashville
Following a news conference with Metro Nashville Police, mother Ashbey Beasley turned to reporters and asked "aren't you guys tired of covering this?," saying she was on a family vacation in the area when she learned of the shooting.

Boise, ID: Violent and property crimes down in 2022

Long-time New Orleans resident says many are fearful amid crime surge

NYPD counterterrorism chief to retire months after predecessor exited

The Rise of Robots in Retail Continues
For security, safety, inventory tracking and more

Lowe's, BJ's, Ikea, and other retailers are using robots to clean up, track inventory, and police parking lots – taking the burden off human workers

Autonomous robots have been increasingly popular in the retail industry.

BJ's Wholesale Club plans to deploy robots, named "Tally," designed by robotics company Simbe, to check store shelves multiple times per day to ensure products are in-stock and in the appropriate sections.

Lowe's recently revealed that it's experimenting with using autonomous robots to patrol parking lots to enhance safety. Lowe's began testing 400-pound Knightscope K5 robots in Philadelphia in February and plans to utilize them in Washington state, North Carolina, California, and Washington D.C.

In Europe, Ikea has dispatched 100 autonomous drones to track inventory and "improve the wellbeing" of coworkers. The Swedish furniture giant has placed the drones inside stores in Belgium. They go to work during off-hours to improve stock accuracy, the retailer said.

Lowe's, BJ's, and Ikea are only the latest of a large swathe of retailers to implement these types of technologies. Walmart, for example, rolled out a robot called "Alphabot" to help with grocery picking and packing in a store in New Hampshire and plans to expand to other stores.

Automated grocery systems like Alphabot are estimated to pick and pack orders as much as 10 times faster than a human. The company also tried aisle-roaming, inventory-scanning robots for about three years, but stopped using them in 2020. businessinsider.com

Remote Work's Impact on Big Cities
Will Working from Home Kill the City?

The work-from-home revolution is hurting the downtown economy of many cities, lowering the tax revenues they collect.

Intel recently announced it was selling its sprawling, four-building campus in San Jose — home to 8,700 employees. It’s part of a larger phenomenon documented in September in a paper, “Work from Home and the Office Real Estate Apocalypse,” published by the venerable research nonprofit, the National Bureau of Economic Research (or NBER).

The loss has wide repercussions, starting with how the work-from-home revolution hurts other parts of the downtown economy, ultimately lowering the tax revenues that cities collect. As recently as last August, restaurant visits had plummeted from pre-pandemic levels in San Francisco and New York — down 41% and 37%, respectively — according to data from the online reservation service OpenTable (cited in NBER’s paper).

In January the Washington Post’s editorial board even devised a catchy name for the larger problem: “dead downtowns… office workers are still missing in action.”

They pointed out that office occupancy was down more than 40% from its 2019 levels in New York, Los Angeles and D.C. A December report from the San Francisco Standard also noted that San Francisco’s budget projections for the next six years included over $1 billion in lost commercial property tax revenue. “The losses have largely been blamed on private companies’ remote work policies.”

“But the pain doesn’t end there. As noted by city economist Ted Egan at the committee meeting, office space industries contribute about 72% of San Francisco’s GDP meaning ‘if anything happens to the office sector, it ripples throughout virtually every aspect of the city’s economy.'” thenewstack.io

The Union Battle is Still Raging

Union Retaliation Firings?
Apple illegally fired five labor activists, union says

The workers, who were disciplined and fired for attendance-related issues, believe they were let go because of their union organizing

Apple fired five union organizers in Kansas City, Mo., in retaliation for union activity, the Communications Workers of America alleged in charges filed with the National Labor Relations Board on Monday.

The terminated workers, who all were active organizers in a nascent union drive at the Apple store at Country Club Plaza in Kansas City, said they were disciplined and fired for tardiness, calling out of work, and improperly filling out attendance-related forms.

The tech giant is one of a handful of high-profile companies, such as Amazon and Starbucks, grappling with a wave of union organizing. Apple retail workers at stores in Towson, Md., and Oklahoma City became the first in the company’s history to unionize last year, as other campaigns have faced setbacks. Apple has held regular meetings at its stores to discuss the pitfalls of joining unions. But the Communications Workers of America, which has a national campaign to organize Apple workers, said the charges are the first the union has filed against Apple for unlawfully terminating retail workers for union activity.

Union organizers say companies often use attendance policies to weed out workers who are supportive of unions. Starbucks union organizers have also been reportedly fired over the past year for attendance issues, including arriving to work a few minutes late. Starbucks has previously said that workers are terminated after violating company policies and not in retaliation for engaging in union activity. washingtonpost.com

Unionizing Store Closure
Chipotle agrees to pay ex-employees after closing store that tried to unionize
Chipotle Mexican Grill will pay a total $240,000 in salary and back pay to the former employees of an Augusta, Maine, restaurant that the company shuttered after the workers tried to unionize. The settlement payouts — which are based on pay rates, average hours and seniority — will range between $5,800 to more than $21,000 to each of the affected employees.

“This isn’t just a victory for Chipotle United. It’s a win for food service workers across the country,” said Brandi McNease, a former Augusta Chipotle employee and lead organizer of the Chipotle United union. “It sends a message to corporations that shutting down a store and blackballing workers didn’t work for Chipotle and it won’t work for them either.”

Chipotle, which did not admit to wrongdoing as part of the settlement, has denied the allegation that union-busting was behind its decision to shutter the Augusta location last July. At that time, the company said the closure was because of difficulty finding staff. But the National Labor Relations Board, which oversees labor relations at most US businesses, filed a complaint in November alleging that the closing was an effort to defeat the union organizing.

“We settled this case not because we did anything wrong, but because the time, energy and cost to litigate would have far outweighed the settlement agreement,” the chain said in a statement Monday. “We respect our employees’ rights to organize under the National Labor Relations Act.” cnn.com

Grocery Industry Closely Watching Kroger/Albertsons Merger
Union leader says Giant Eagle wary about Kroger/Albertsons merger
Kroger, the Ohio-based company that from time to time surfaces as a possible suitor for Giant Eagle, announced in October that it plans to buy Idaho-based Albertsons Companies Inc. for nearly $25 billion.

Wendell Young, president of United Food and Commercial Workers Local 1776, which represents workers at Giant Eagle, says the grocer is closely watching the Kroger/Albertsons merger even though Kroger has been out of the Pittsburgh market for decades. “They’re going to be able to acquire products much cheaper. If you’re Giant Eagle — whether they admit it or not — they’re trying to figure out, ‘What are we going to do?’” post-gazette.com

Disney to begin laying off 7,000 employees in multiple stages

Bed Bath & Beyond plans another 1,300 layoffs

Target to close 4 small-format stores this spring

Torrid to open 30 to 40 stores this year

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Secure Your Business With Video Alarms

Biden Enacts New Spyware & Surveillance Guidelines
Executive order sets up guardrails for US use of commercial spyware

At least 50 devices belonging to U.S. personnel have been targeted by commercial spyware.

President Biden signed an executive order on Monday that prohibits U.S. government agencies from using commercial spyware that presents a national security risk to the United States.

The new guidelines set long-awaited guardrails on how the U.S. government uses commercial spyware and respond to the growing use of the powerful surveillance tools, which allow for buyers to remotely hack into electronic devices and extract information without the target’s knowledge. The technology has become increasingly popular with authoritarian regimes targeting dissidents, journalists and political adversaries, with numerous public accounts of abuse around the globe.

In examining the issue, the White House found that “commercial spyware vendors were aggressively marketing, seeking to make inroads across the U.S.’s many law enforcement and intelligence components, sometimes obfuscating their business ties and practices,” according to a senior administration official.

Monday’s guidelines seek to help agencies avoid the use of technology that has a history of being used against the United States or violating human rights. But the executive does not provide an outright ban on U.S. agencies using spyware. Rather, the order seeks to prevent the use of products deemed unacceptable by the U.S. government, while keeping the door open to the use of other commercial surveillance products.

The executive order designates a spyware company as a security risk if it demonstrates any of the following factors: a foreign government or person has used the product to spy against the U.S. government or a U.S. person without the consent of the U.S. government; the spyware has been used by foreign actors in human rights abuses, limiting freedom of expression or curb dissent; or the spyware is used by governments with a history of systematic political repression. cyberscoop.com

Cybersecurity Gaps Leaving Companies Vulnerable
The era of passive cybersecurity awareness training is over
Despite increased emphasis on cybersecurity from authorities and high-profile breaches, critical gaps in vulnerability management within organizations are being overlooked by executive leadership teams, according to Action1. These gaps leave organizations vulnerable to cyber threats.

Low cybersecurity awareness among employees: According to the survey, the time required to combat low cybersecurity awareness among employees has increased over the past year. This worrying trend makes organizations more vulnerable to phishing and other cyber-attacks.

Breaches due to known vulnerabilities: The survey found that 10% of organizations suffered a breach over the past 12 months, with 47% resulting from known security vulnerabilities. Phishing was the most common attack vector reported by 49% of respondents, and 54% of victims had their data encrypted by ransomware.

Lack of support from the executive team for cybersecurity initiatives: IT teams ranked the lack of support from the executive team for cybersecurity initiatives as a critical threat to cyber resilience. Many IT teams also face operational issues that leave no time for cybersecurity.

Slow vulnerability detection, poor prioritization, and faulty remediation: 30% of organizations take more than a month to detect known vulnerabilities. 38% of organizations fail to prioritize security flaws, while 40% take over a month to remediate known vulnerabilities (of them, 24% take more than 3 months). On average, 20% of endpoints remain continuously unpatched due to laptop shutdowns or update errors.

Consider leveraging automation to reduce costs: Justifying the need for cybersecurity investment to the executive team may be challenging for tech leaders. Compared to other business functions, the return from investing in IT security could be more apparent to executives.

Take cybersecurity awareness to the next level: Modern social engineering attacks often use a combination of communication channels such as email, phone calls, SMS, and messengers. With the recent theft of terabytes of data, attackers are increasingly using this information to personalize their messaging and pose as trusted organizations. helpnetsecurity.com

Cloud Security Threats Growing Among Companies of All Sizes
The top five cloud security threats and how to protect against them
Cloud computing has become prevalent among all sizes of companies. Cloud services like Software-as-a-Service (SaaS), and Infrastructure as-a-Service (IaaS) are widely used by companies as they are flexible, cost-efficient, and effective solutions to host apps and store data.

Without a doubt, cloud services enable enormous benefits to companies, but simultaneously these bring many security risks, and threats along. While using cloud services, it is critical to secure these environments. In this article, we will explain the top five cloud security threats and how to protect against them.

1- Data breaches: Data breaches are a massive threat and the biggest concern of companies. When cybercriminals steal the confidential information of customers, clients, and vendors that are stored in the cloud environments, this will have negative consequences on the victim company.

2- Insider threats: Insider threats present huge risks to companies. Insider threats refer to a malicious insider using his access privileges to leak confidential data or launch attacks on other cloud assets, and company networks. Insider attacks can have disruptive effects on company resources both in cloud environments and on-premises.

3- Distributed Denial of Service (DDoS) attacks: Distributed Denial of Service (DDoS) is a common type of cyber attack in which cyber criminals seek to crash a machine, server, or network and make it accessible for authorised users for a period of time.

4- Cloud misconfiguration: Cloud misconfigurations can leave confidential data to exposure, and make cloud assets vulnerable to attacks. Misconfiguring important cloud security components like access management systems and encryption can put cloud environments at great risk.

5- Account hijacking by phishing: Account hijacking by phishing is a concerning threat. Cybercriminals can send phishing emails or text messages to employees and steal their login credentials. From there they can gain access to cloud hosted data and perform malicious tasks and steal confidential data. retailtechinnovationhub.com

ChatGPT Data Leak
A bug revealed ChatGPT users’ chat history, personal and billing data
A vulnerability in the redis-py open-source library was at the root of last week’s ChatGPT data leak, OpenAI has confirmed. Not only were some ChatGPT users able to see what other users have been using the AI chatbot for, but limited personal and billing information ended up getting revealed, as well.

How did the ChatGPT data leak happen?

ChatGPT suffered an outage on March 20 and then problems with making conversation history accessible to users. But it turned out to be an even more serious problem:

“During a nine-hour window on March 20, 2023, another ChatGPT user may have inadvertently seen your billing information when clicking on their own ‘Manage Subscription’ page,” OpenAI notified 1.2% of the ChatGPT Plus subscribers via email.

The bug has since been patched, and OpenAI has added checks to make sure requesting users don’t get data belonging to other users. Then they trawled their logs to make sure the unwanted behavious stopped and to identify affected users. helpnetsecurity.com

7 Women Leading the Charge in Cybersecurity Research & Analysis

These 15 European startups are set to take the cybersecurity world by storm

How to Avoid Fake News

Not sure if the news source you're reading is trustworthy? The browser extension NewsGuard, available on Google Chrome, Microsoft Edge, Firefox and Safari, rates news by the likelihood of it being accurate based on basic standards of accuracy and accountability. This is an easy and free way to reduce to your chance of reading fake news.

Online Retailers Start Backing Away From Free Shipping
Amazon, other retailers revamp 'free' shipping as costs soar

There is no such thing as free shipping.

Amazon.com Inc and other online retailers who use so-called free delivery to cultivate customer loyalty are scrambling to keep it from draining profits as costs climb and e-commerce contracts.

They are adding fees for faster service, raising minimum purchase requirements and making other changes that shift more costs to consumers who are struggling with financial issues of their own.

It is an open secret that most retailers raise product prices to subsidize free shipping. Still, product inflation and soaring shipping costs are making the service unsustainable as the prospect of recession threatens to wallop already-flagging online spending.

Amazon marketed free shipping as a differentiator and used pricey Prime subscriptions and fat profits from other businesses to underwrite its package delivery costs - forcing other retailers to follow, even if they lacked Amazon's advantages.

With retail margins shrinking and shipping rates for United Parcel Service Inc, FedEx Corp and the U.S. Postal Service hitting record levels, the industry where nearly three-quarters of e-commerce companies offer some sort of free shipping is rethinking the financial cost of habituating shoppers to free shipping. reuters.com

Judge Permanently Blocks Some E-Commerce Sellers Over Fakes
Pop Star Harry Styles Scores Win Against Online Counterfeit Sellers
A Chicago federal judge agreed to permanently block a number of e-commerce sellers from selling counterfeit merchandise infringing pop star Harry Styles’ trademarks.

Judge Franklin U. Valderrama of the Northern District of Illinois on Thursday granted the “As It Was” singer’s motion for default judgment following the sellers’ failure to respond to Styles’ complaint, preventing the alleged counterfeiters from using the “Harry Styles” trademark.

Earlier this year, Valderrama granted Styles a preliminary injunction to prohibit the sale of counterfeit merchandise.

The order directs e-commerce platforms including eBay, Amazon and Etsy to disable sales and advertisements of the infringing products. news.bloomberglaw.com

Millennials plan to stick with online shopping even as stores rebound, survey finds

Is inflation crushing e-commerce volume growth?

Update: Auburn, WA: Police recover millions of dollars in stolen property after thrift shop scheme
Pictures and videos from inside the Safeway Distribution Center show boxes and boxes of stolen merchandise — a printer, a home theater audio system, tools, a handbag, cosmetics. A man wheels a cart with a tall stack of boxes held together with plastic wrap. Men and women search through the piles of items. Businesses have arrived at the distribution center to sort through the stolen products. After several years, the Auburn Police Department has closed a multi-jurisdictional investigation into a pawn shop scheme.

The Auburn-led investigation resulted in the recovery and return of “millions of dollars worth of stolen property … to their rightful owners,” according to the department’s social media post. The Auburn police and distribution center coordinated the return of items on March 9 and March 10, following the adjudication of the case, according to the department. The U.S. District Court in Seattle sentenced Aleksandr Pavlovskiy to six years in prison and 15 years of supervised release for trafficking in stolen goods and possession of child pornography after Pavlovskiy pleaded guilty to charges in October 2021. According to the release, Pavlovskiy ran two pawn shops — Thrift Electro in Renton and Innovation Best in Kent — between 2013 and 2016. Following Pavlovskiy’s direction, employees purchased stolen retail goods from shoplifters and delivery drivers for online retailers, paying cash for the items.

After establishing a warehouse in Kent for the storage and repackaging of stolen products for sale on eBay and Amazon in 2016, Pavlovskiy and his employees shipped hundreds of thousands of stolen items nationwide, according to police. The business generated between $1.5 million and $3.5 million in revenue between January 2017 and July 2019. The Auburn Police Department and FBI served search warrants on Pavlovskiy’s home, vehicles and business locations in July 2019, after beginning investigation in the summer of 2018, according to the release. In addition to the documentation of stolen products, forensic analysis also discovered more than 20,000 images and videos of minors engaged in sexually explicit conduct. auburn-reporter.com

Columbia, SC: Man arrested for receiving stolen goods valued at more than $10,000
Deputies from the Richland County Sheriff’s Office (RCSD) arrested a man after he was discovered to have hundreds of thousands of dollars in stolen merchandise in his home. Deputies announced on Friday the arrest of 54-year-old Yong Li Dong. Dong was charged with receiving stolen goods, valued at $10,000 or more and booked into the Alvin S. Glenn Detention Center. According to a press release, on Thursday, March 23, RCSD assisted Columbia Police investigators with a search warrant at Dong’s home in reference to the theft of medical equipment from a local hospital. Deputies said investigators discovered hundreds of items while in the home, many with security tags that were consistent with RCSD shoplifting cases in the area. Investigators returned to the home later at night after obtaining another search warrant. Deputies said investigators worked through the night and into today sorting through each room which was piled floor-to-ceiling with merchandise, much of it believed stolen. The stolen merchandise is valued at around $500,000, according to an estimation made by investigators. Loss prevention staff from Lowe’s, Walmart, Home Depot, Target and others were on the scene to collect the items taken from their respective stores. Deputies say the stores will conduct an inventory and report back to investigators. wistv.com

Hayward, CA: Home Depot worker arrested for stealing merchandise as part of retail theft scheme
California Highway Patrol investigators have arrested a Hayward Home Depot worker suspected of stealing merchandise from the store as part of an organized retail theft scheme, the CHP announced Thursday. The CHP Golden Gate Division said in a Facebook post its Organized Retail Crime Task Force was contacted by the store's loss prevention investigators on March 1 about several thefts committed by a store employee while working after hours. The store investigators also provided the CHP task force with surveillance video of the employee and the vehicle used in several of the incidents, the CHP said. Home Depot estimated the loss from the stolen merchandise in excess of $300,000. cbsnews.com

Greece, NY: Police investigating burglary at Dick's Sporting Goods
Police are investigating after Dick’s Sporting Goods at The Mall at Greece Ridge was burglarized overnight into Saturday morning. Police are looking for six suspects, who allegedly used to break in through the front door of the store and caused more than $100,000 worth of damage. It's unclear what was stolen. 13wham.com

Charleston, SC: Shoplifting increases at West Ashley Ulta Beauty
A West Ashley beauty supply store is reporting thousands of dollars in stolen merchandise in recent years. Thieves have cost Ulta Beauty in West Ashley’s Westwood Plaza more than $54,000 in the last three years -- and that’s just the merchandise that’s been reported stolen. One of the store managers says the most recent incident happened Sunday night. live5news.com

Searcy, AR: 3 arrested in $2,000 Walmart shoplifting incident last week where store employee punched in face

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Shootings & Deaths

Fort Smith, AR: Search for C-store clerk killer continues in Fort Smith
The search for a shooter in the death of a Fort Smith convenience store clerk gunned down during a Friday night robbery continued Monday, police said. Chanell Moore, 28, the mother of four children, was at work when she was shot and killed at Doug's Eastside Convenience Center Friday night at 9017 Rogers Ave. Police reported Monday afternoon that surveillance video captured images. "We are releasing a photo that was taken from the surveillance footage that captured the homicide that evening," police reported Monday afternoon. "A witness to the incident, whose vehicle was fired upon and struck by the suspect also reported a dark SUV of unknown make and model that was parked at the side of the store shortly before the homicide occurred." swtimes.com

Columbus, OH: U.S. Marshals, Columbus SWAT arrest gas station murder suspect
U.S. Marshals' Southern Ohio Fugitive Apprehension Strike Team (SOFAST) and Columbus Division of Police SWAT located and arrested a 22-year-old man for a March homicide at a Sheetz store in southeast Columbus. Malike D. Miller was wanted for murder in connection to the March 3 shooting at a Sheetz store in the 3000 block of South Hamilton Road. Miller was arrested in the 1700 block of Shanley Drive Friday for the murder of 23-year-old Jared Porter. Columbus police said the shooting happened just before 4:30 a.m. on March 3. Porter was rushed to Mount Carmel East Hospital in critical condition but later died. cwcolumbus.com

Phoenix, AZ: Family Dollar worker shoots customer 15 times in altercation
A Family Dollar employee in Arizona is facing felony charges after reportedly admitting to shooting a suspected shoplifter who allegedly attacked him. Kevin Salas Madrid, 24, confronted a "serial shoplifter" who had previously hit his store on multiple occasions, leading to that shoplifter punching him, local news in Phoenix reports. After being punched, Madrid reportedly pulled out a gun and shot the shoplifter multiple times, with witnesses saying Madrid kept shooting the shoplifter even after the man fell to the ground. According to one witness, the 24-year-old Family Dollar employee said he could not control his anger after the suspected serial shoplifter punched his glasses off. Later, when talking with police, Madrid allegedly called his response to the alleged attack "egregious." A Family Dollar employee who claims to have witnessed the shooting said that Madrid possibly fired up to 15 shots during the incident, according to the publication Arizona's Family. When police arrived at the store, Madrid reportedly identified himself as the gunman and his gun was reportedly empty of ammunition. A media advisory from the Phoenix Police Department on March 22 says the shooting occurred that day around 7:50 p.m. at the Family Dollar location on Indian School Road in Phoenix. The victim of the shooting was taken to the hospital in critical condition following the incident, according to the media advisory, which added that Madrid was arrested and jailed on an attempted second-degree murder charge "and other felony charges." foxchattanooga.com

Albuquerque, NM: Man charged for South Valley McDonald’s shooting
An Albuquerque man has been accused of firing shots at a South Valley McDonald’s. Three men were involved in the incident with two Mcdonald’s employees early Friday morning, Mar. 24, but Matteo Jiron is now facing charges. According to a criminal complaint, three men went to the drive-thru at the McDonald’s on Isleta and Rio Bravo Boulevard, where they began throwing trash and making a mess. When two employees confronted the men, deputies say 22-year-old Matteo Jiron fired a gun at the restaurant while the other two men fought the employees. krqe.com

Milwaukee, WI: Five people are hurt after an early morning shooting Monday outside a Milwaukee bar
Investigators say the shooting happened outside Prime Social Restaurant and Bar. All injuries were reportedly non-life-threatening.

Robberies, Incidents & Thefts

St. Augustine, FL: Shoplifting at St. Augustine Outlet Mall leads to police chase after driver tries to run over Deputy
A shoplifting incident at the St. Augustine Outlet Mall turned into a dangerous high-speed pursuit that ended with the arrest of four individuals who allegedly tried to run over a St. Johns County Sheriff’s Office deputy Saturday evening. St. Johns County Sheriff’s Office reported that patrol deputies were investigating a shoplifting incident at the St. Augustine Outlet Mall when things took a dangerous turn. According to a police report, one of the suspects attempted to run over one of the deputies who was standing outside his vehicle. The SJCSO reported that the suspects then fled the scene, prompting a high-speed pursuit. In an attempt to evade the police, the suspects turned around, ramming multiple patrol vehicles in the process. The chase eventually ended after a short foot pursuit, with four individuals being taken into custody. Thankfully, no deputies were seriously injured during the incident. actionnewsjax.com

Omaha, NE: Police arrest a man from a McDonald’s roof following an hour’s long standoff
Omaha police arrest a man they said climbed onto a McDonald’s roof, causing an hours-long standoff. The unidentified man climbed down Sunday morning around 3:30 after negotiating with investigators for more than six hours. According to Omaha Police Lt. Brian Schmaderer, officers were initially called for an attempted arson at the Jimmy John’s on 40th and Dodge streets. Schmaderer said the man then went down Dodge to a nearby Subway and caused a disturbance there, before moving to an abandoned building just up the street and causing $1,000 in damage. According to OPD, officers were then routed to the McDonalds near 40th and Dodge streets just after 9 p.m. for a report of a man who had climbed onto the roof. Schmaderer said the man approached workers who were taking out trash and gained access to the roof. Several attempts to get the man down failed and at one point, he could be seen on video ripping pieces of the roof trim off and throwing them at officers. kion546.com

Update: Glendale, AZ: 4 robbers sentenced to prison for stealing $1.5M from Jared Jewelry store
The four suspects who attempted to steal $1.5 million in cash and merchandise from a Glendale jewelry store have all been sentenced to prison. A Maricopa County judge has recently sentenced the last of the four defendants who were involved in a robbery last March at a Jared jewelry store. The robbers zip-tied some of the people inside the store and threatened them with a gun. The four suspects attempted to flee with $1.5 million in stolen goods but were quickly detained by police. The Maricopa County Attorney's Office said each defendant pleaded guilty to burglary and armed robbery. The four defendants have been given the following prison sentences: Gary Wayne Freeny- 10.5 years , Monta Lamont Harris- 11.25 years, Deandre Donte Haven- 7 years, Kenneth Ray Walton Jr- 8 years. “The victims in this case lived through terrifying moments as they feared for their lives at the hands of criminals,” said County Attorney Rachel Mitchell in a statement. “Our office was relentless in the pursuit of justice for those nine individuals inside the store; the money and jewelry taken were recovered.” 12news.com

Gig Harbor, WA: 23 arrested during retail theft operation in Gig Harbor
Last Thursday and Friday, plainclothes officers from the Gig Harbor Police Department (GHPD) and a Pierce County Sheriff investigator worked with local loss prevention officers in a retail theft emphasis patrol. Over the two-day operation, 23 people were arrested for theft-related crimes. Twenty-one were arrested for 3rd-degree theft, while two were arrested for 2nd-degree, according to officials. Officials said that all of the Robbery cases involved the thieves using force against loss prevention personnel while committing theft. Over $3500 in merchandise was recovered during the operation, according to officials. komonews.com

Branford, CT: Shoplifter threatened Branford grocery store employee with knife

New York, NY: 2 suspects wanted in Upper East Side jewelry store robbery

Philadelphia, PA: Mayfair Pizza Reopens More Than 2 Weeks Since Owner Thwarted Armed Robbery

Shelton, CT: 21-year-old arrested after striking Walmart employee with stolen curtain rod

Schuylkill County, PA: Former Rite Aid employee accused of stealing over $34K in PA lottery tickets

• C-Store – New Haven, CT – Robbery
• C-Store – Macon, GA – Armed Robbery
• C-Store – Town of Ulster, NY – Armed Robbery
• C-Store – Palmer, MA – Robbery
• C-Store – Palm Desert, CA - Armed Robbery
• C-Store – Stafford, VA – Armed Robbery
• Distribution Center – Lackawanna County, PA – Burglary
• Dollar – Cleveland, OH – Robbery
• Grocery – Branford, CT - Armed Robbery
• Hardware – Douglas County, NV - Armed Robbery
• Hardware – Scott County, KY - Burglary
• Hardware – Coral Springs, FL – Burglary
• Jewelry- New York, NY – Robbery
• Jewelry – Bay City, MI – Robbery
• Jewelry - Birch Run, MI - Robbery
• Jewelry - Bronx, NY - Robbery
• Jewelry - Phoenix, AZ - Robbery
• Jewelry - Orlando, FL: - Burglary
• Liquor – Montgomery County, MD – Armed Robbery
• Mall – St Augustine, FL – Robbery
• Pharmacy – Greensboro, NC – Robbery
• Pharmacy – Middlesex Borough, NJ – Robbery
• Restaurant – Colorado Springs, CO – Armed Robbery
• Restaurant – Rochester, NY – Burglary
• Restaurant – San Francisco, CA – Burglary
• Restaurant – Pueblo, CO – Armed Robbery
• Sports – Greece, NY – Burglary
• Ulta – Charleston, SC – Robbery
• Walmart - Searcy, AR - Robbery

Daily Totals:
• 22 robberies
• 7 burglaries
• 0 shootings
• 0 killed

Click to enlarge map

None to report.

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