Gary Giordano was the center of an ORC theft operation in Montgomery County 8 years ago before he became the center of the murder case involving the disappearance of Frederick, MD's Robyn Gardner in Aruba. While operating the ORC ring, he would "boldly load his cart at Target stores in the area and roll right out the front door, sometimes returning to do it all again the same day."  His brush with the law in Montgomery County began back in 2003 at a Target in Germantown when he was busted shoplifting electronics on the surveillance cameras. Cops say he later sold the stolen gaming systems and DVD players on the internet.  Giordano was eventually convicted on theft charges in Montgomery and Frederick Counties, although he dodged a bullet with suspended sentences. As to whether Giordano will be as lucky in this latest case, the detective who knew him before the national news doesn't want to say. Hill explains, "I'd rather keep that to myself." (Source abc2news.com)  (Source go.com)

Last week's Phoenix ORC bust was a result of collaborative Valley police work between Phoenix, Glendale and Mesa police departments. "This case underscores our combined commitment to root out organized retail crime in our community and protect hard-working business owners and the customers they serve," Maricopa County Attorney Bill Montgomery said.  The shoplifting crews sometimes hit shopping centers up to five times a week, targeting malls such as Desert Ridge Marketplace, Scottsdale Fashion Square, Outlets at Anthem, Chandler Fashion Center, SanTan Village Mall, Desert Sky Mall and Arrowhead Towne Center.  In the recent bust, crews of two to five shoplifters would enter various malls as a group and target certain stores that did not have significant video surveillance and were easy to get in and out of quickly. They would stage the clothes in a store before the act of shoplifting so as to get various sizes, colors or styles of an item, and to obtain anything they personally wanted, authorities said.  Usually, the shoplifters had department store bags hidden on them, or they would walk in carrying their own large bags. They would act quickly, placing merchandise in their bags once inside the store. They would then walk out of the store, usually handing the bag of stolen items to a co-conspirator who sometimes would hand the bag to another accomplice waiting outside.  After leaving the store, they would drop the stolen merchandise in their car, go back into the mall and do the same thing at another store, targeting several malls the same day. This organization had multiple shoplifting crews at several malls at one time.  On average, investigators estimate that each time the crews went into a store, that store lost at least $1,500 worth of merchandise, which was then resold among the shoplifters' buyers for a flat rate, such as $5 per T-shirt or $10 for jeans.  (Source azcentral.com)

ORC ring leader identified that's been hitting stores in three South Jersey counties in recent months.  Frank Zaveckas, 36, is wanted on a robbery charge stemming from an Aug. 12 incident at a Kmart store in Gloucester, New Jersey. He allegedly assaulted a store loss prevention officer while attempting to steal a 32 inch television set.  The investigation is ongoing.  (Source nj.com)  (Source go.com)