Police in Metro Detroit, MI Think They've Cracked Big Panty Theft Ring
Police in Troy have cracked a case that may have exposed one of the biggest underwear theft rings in the country. Reginald Murphy, 35, of Toledo, OH, was caught red-handed with about $1,000 worth of underwear believed stolen from Victoria's Secret stores at a pair of Oakland County malls that, believe it or not, lead the nation in underwear thefts. Murphy allegedly stole the delicates from Victoria's Secret stores in the Oakland and Somerset Collection malls, two Troy malls that have reported a rash of underwear thefts in recent months. Police said they suspect Murphy may be part of a larger theft ring. It's unclear whether Murphy planned to keep the underwear for himself, give the lingerie to another person or resell the panties. Police set up an undercover sting operation at Oakland Mall last week. Surveillance video showed him stuffing about $500 worth of lingerie in a bag in about 15 seconds, police said. Police said they found thousands of dollars worth of merchandise in the rented Nissan Altima Murphy was driving. patch.com

Moore, OK: Police bust 'professional' credit card skimmer / counterfeit credit card operation  A massive counterfeit credit card operation was shut down by Moore police, and federal investigators say their victims are spread across the country. Police received a call about a suspicious group of men buying dozens of gift cards at a Wal-Mart in Moore. Tens of thousands worth of gift cards were recovered. When the group went back for a second day, an arrest was made. That led investigators to another big bust. Police stopped 21-year-old Juan Giraldo on Interstate 35 after leaving a Wal-Mart parking lot. Inside the car, investigators found those gift cards, as well as information that led them to a storage unit. Re-encoded counterfeit credit and debit cards along with credit card manufacturing equipment, and gas pump skimming devices found inside. "$500 to $1,000, sometimes more on every card. All the cards have money on them," Chief Lewis said. It wasn't just gift cards either. Police said stolen cash was loaded on to Wal-Mart gas cards. koco.com

Rock Hill, SC: Walmart $700 razor thief arrested at McDonald's drive-through
A woman who shoplifted $700 in merchandise from a Rock Hill store was arrested a short time later when police saw her sitting in a fast food drive-through less than two miles from the store, according to Rock Hill Police. When asked where she was coming from, the driver said the Walmart Neighborhood Market and admitted to taking the merchandise, which was concealed in a large gift bag, police said. The merchandise, which totaled about $700 and included teeth whitening products, razors and greeting cards. heraldonline.com

Norwalk, CT: Man charged with stealing from Home Depot, head-butting employee  Police spoke with the Home Depot loss prevention employee who said a white male, who looked to be in his 20s, with a lanky build had placed two buckets of exterior paint valued at $180 apiece in a shopping cart and pushed the cart toward the customer service area. After walking away from the cart, the suspect, later identified as Wymss, returned to the cart and attempted to return items he did not buy in exchange for a cash valued gift card for $360. thehour.com

UK: 76 year old man drove daughter around Perth on family shoplifting trips
George Keen armed himself with pliers while Lesley Whyte, 50, stuffed a heavy duty magnet in her bra so they could remove security tags while robbing a string of stores. Keen was banned from driving for six months on Wednesday after a sheriff heard how he used his car to drive his 76-year-old wife and their daughter on the shoplifting escapades. He was also fined $1,500 while his daughter was ordered to carry out 180 hours unpaid work and pay $500 compensation. news.stv.tv

Garry Brent Varnado, 63, of Muskegon, MI sentenced to 15 months to 10 years Michigan Department of Corrections for organized retail crime, habitual offender third, consecutive to parole, $198 fees/costs