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NRF Calls for Crackdown on Organized Retail Crime
The National Retail Federation's (NRF) 11th annual Organized Retail Crime (ORC)
Survey reveals that while both retailers and lawmakers are increasingly creating
measures to control loss prevention, more is needed to curb growing concerns
over stolen merchandise. The 2015 findings paint a stark landscape for
retailers. An astonishing 97% of retail loss prevention executives surveyed
believe their company has encountered organized retail crime in the last 12
months, up from 88% last year. The average dollar write-off per $1 billion in
annual sales due to such activities is $453,940. The problem does not appear to
be going away any time soon with 48.5% of victim companies reporting significant
increases in ORC activity this year.
A major concern voiced in the survey is that criminals are increasingly
targeting cargo in transit. The percent of polled retailers experiencing cargo
theft rose from 35.4% to 37.9% in the past year. NRF Vice President of Loss
Prevention Bob Moraca believes that the surge is part of a larger strategy to
outmaneuver retailers as executives wise up to traditional tactics. "Brazen and
often dangerous criminals are finding new ways every day to manipulate the
retail supply chain," he said. "From the docks where merchandise comes in to
criminal flash mobs that involve several individuals running into a store at
once, the methods used by crime gangs today run the gamut." The survey reports
that several retailers are encountering bolder attempts by criminals including "smash and grabs" and pepper spray tactics.
edgl.com
 Pontiac, MI: Man's scam turned Home Depot thefts into gift cards -
$600,000 to $800,000 before police arrested him in March
You might call Adelbert Ackerman's business model a brilliant example of
vertical integration. Running a large-scale fencing operation, using a team of
prostitutes, heroin users, parolees and panhandlers to steal high-priced items
from local Home Depots. He then would recruit homeless people from shelters to
return the stolen merchandise to a different store.
Since homeless people often have legitimate identification, as required by the
store for any returns, they were given store debit cards, akin to gift cards,
which they handed over to Ackerman.
usatoday.com
Millburn, NJ: Neiman Marcus $10,000 Grab & Run Shoplifters
strike security vehicle while fleeing
Authorities are investigating the theft of $10,000 worth of jeans from the
Neiman Marcus store at The Mall at Short Hills, township police announced. Three
men entered the store Oct. 5, selected 20 pairs of jeans, ran out of the
establishment and fled in a blue SUV, which struck a mall security vehicle
before heading onto Route 124, township police said in a news release. The
incident follows the theft of $400 worth of sweatpants from the mall's
Footlocker store Oct. 4, according to police.
northjersey.com
Norwalk, CT: Bronx, NY man busted attempting to purchase $800 of Best Buy
merchandise w/ fake Credit Card
A New York man is facing serious charges after police say he was allegedly
caught trying to purchase items with a fraudulent credit card. Stanley
Paez-Caraballo, 20, was charged with fifth-degree larceny, credit card theft,
criminal attempt, illegal use of a credit card and receiving goods illegally.
Police Officers were alerted to an incident at Best Buy, upon arrival, officers
spoke with an employee who said the suspect, Paez-Caraballo had attempted to
purchase two Sony PlayStations totaling $799.98 online and pick up the items in
the store.
thehour.com
Westfield, MA: $500 worth of Rogaine stolen from Stop & Shop
According to the Westfield Detective Bureau Facebook page, the man is suspected
of stealing nearly $500 worth of the hair growth treatment product, Rogaine,
from the Stop and Shop on Main Street, last Thursday.
wwlp.com
Delhi, India: 600 Cellphones Stolen From Delhi Airport, Sold Through Flipkart
E-commerce giant Flipkart has been asked to help with an investigation of what
the Delhi Police say is a massive racket involving the theft of imported
cellphones from airline cargo. Six persons have been arrested in the case. The
police said they have recovered 209 phones after the arrest of a gang that stole
mobile phones from the cargo at Delhi's IGI airport. They said 22 of these
phones were recovered from people who had bought them on Flipkart, after members
of the gang allegedly confessed to selling them on that site. In July, a
Delhi-based logistics company had reported that 600 high-end mobile phones were
missing from a shipment sourced from Hong Kong. When the airport police failed
to track the missing phones, the matter was reported to the Delhi police, which
formed a special team to investigate the case.
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