States Lead as CORCA Awaits Senate
States Expand Retail Crime Enforcement Tools

New Legislation Targets Organized Theft, Cargo Crime and Repeat Offenders

By the D&D Daily staff

While federal organized retail crime legislation continues to attract attention in Washington, many of the most significant developments in retail crime enforcement are occurring at the state level.

Across the country, lawmakers are advancing legislation aimed at providing prosecutors and law enforcement agencies with additional tools to address organized retail theft, cargo theft, gift card fraud and repeat theft offenses. The trend reflects a growing recognition that organized retail crime has evolved beyond traditional shoplifting and increasingly involves coordinated criminal networks operating across multiple jurisdictions.

Several states have recently considered or enacted measures that allow prosecutors to aggregate the value of multiple theft incidents when pursuing charges against repeat offenders. Supporters argue that aggregation statutes help investigators connect related incidents that may individually fall below felony thresholds but collectively represent significant criminal activity.

Other legislative proposals focus on cargo theft, an area of increasing concern throughout retail supply chains. Lawmakers in several states have introduced bills that would strengthen penalties for organized cargo theft operations and improve coordination among law enforcement agencies investigating thefts involving distribution centers, transportation providers and retail shipments.

Gift card fraud has also emerged as a legislative focus. Retailers and investigators have reported growing concerns surrounding gift card tampering schemes, prompting lawmakers in some jurisdictions to pursue new penalties and consumer protection requirements intended to reduce fraud opportunities.

In addition to criminal penalties, several states are evaluating measures designed to improve information sharing between retailers and law enforcement agencies. Industry groups have long emphasized that organized retail crime investigations often benefit from collaboration across multiple retailers, jurisdictions and investigative partners.

The increased legislative activity comes as retailers continue investing in intelligence-sharing programs, investigative technology and partnerships aimed at identifying organized theft networks. Many loss prevention and asset protection leaders view legislative developments as one component of a broader strategy that includes prevention, investigation and prosecution efforts.

As state legislatures continue their sessions throughout 2026, retail security professionals are expected to closely monitor new proposals that could influence how organized retail crime cases are investigated, prosecuted and ultimately deterred.


In Case You Missed It: How To Defeat ORC
After 25 years in Federal Law Enforcement, Here's What It Will Take to Beat Organized Retail Crime

By Raul Aguilar - Head of Law Enforcement Partnerships, Americas at Auror

After almost three decades in federal law enforcement, and now leading the largest technology network in the US focused on combating retail crime, I’m often asked how we can better equip the men and women who protect our communities to keep up with the evolving tactics of organized retail crime groups. After all, these are enormous crime networks that operate not just interstate, but transnationally.

The reality is the top 10 percent of offenders are responsible for more than 65 percent of retail crime across the country, and through retailer reporting in Auror, we know those repeat offenders are up to three times more likely to be violent or use weapons in stores. Not to mention this is commonly the highest volume crime type.

There are three key opportunities in front of us to help make law enforcement more efficient in the great work they do to keep our communities safe.

First, break down the barriers that keep law enforcement working in isolation.

Early in my career in California, crimes were treated as isolated events. That model no longer works. ORC is driven by repeat offenders across multiple retail stores and jurisdictions, making up multi-billion-dollar enterprises that fuel other crimes like gun trafficking, counterfeiting, wildlife smuggling, and human trafficking. They are not brand loyal or city specific, they ‘steal-to-order.’ What once looked like petty theft is now a sophisticated financial engine for global crime.

Second, embracing secure technology is the key to surfacing these networks.

The only way to see the true scale of this widespread and volumetric offending is through digital collaboration. By giving police the tools to connect with retailers on this information, they can identify the patterns, the highest harm offenders and bridge the information gap to get on top of fast-moving organized crime.

When we enable this collaboration, the outcomes are huge. Just last year, a $1 billion multi-state ORC operation based out of Texas was dismantled thanks to intelligence sharing across retailers and law enforcement

Finally, our political leaders have a big role to play. The recent passing of the Combating Organized Retail Crime Act (CORCA) by the U.S. House is welcome news. It demonstrates that retail crime is not simply about shoplifting or theft - it's violent, it's organized, it robs communities of their vibrancy, and is a city killer. This is the exact type of federal leadership needed to formalize cooperation and equip law enforcement with the tools they need to keep pace. We must maintain momentum.

Read the full piece here


North Carolina Bill Toughens ORC Penalties
Retail theft, gun crimes, DWIs: What's in NC's sweeping criminal justice bill?

A wide-ranging North Carolina bill would create new felonies, increase penalties for some crimes, expand police investigative powers and strengthen protections for children and domestic violence victims.

North Carolina lawmakers are considering a wide-ranging criminal justice bill that would create new crimes, increase penalties for some offenses and give law enforcement additional tools. Senate Bill 310 combines more than a dozen criminal law changes into a single package.

One of the bill’s most significant provisions targets organized retail theft. Current law allows prosecutors to charge suspects after merchandise is stolen. The bill would create a new Class I felony for entering a retail store with theft-shielding bags, anti-theft bypass devices or other specialized equipment with intent to steal. The proposal targets a more sophisticated brand of organized theft.

“These are groups going in with a shopping list of what they need to steal,” said Andy Ellen, president of the North Carolina Retail Merchants Association. “They’re coming in with the mechanisms to thwart the security devices that we have in our stores.”

More than half of retailers surveyed by the National Retail Federation reported increases in shoplifting and merchandise theft by organized retail crime groups during the 12 months ending in August 2025.

Under current law, such cases are typically charged after stolen merchandise is recovered. If the bill had been in effect, prosecutors could have pursued charges earlier if suspects were found inside stores with tools intended to facilitate theft.

“It would have given law enforcement another tool to use in how they prosecute those cases,” Ellen said.

Similar provisions exist in Florida, New York, Connecticut, Tennessee, Minnesota, and Delaware. wral.com


Billions Diverted to Criminals
UK: Billions in aid handed to terrorists and criminals

Secret dossier reveals foreign aid and Covid relief loans were appropriated by gangs and hostile states

Terrorists, hostile states and gangsters have been given more than £28bn of taxpayers’ money, including through aid payments, according to a secret government report. The Telegraph can reveal details of a dossier showing that billions of pounds went to organised crime, with millions going to Russia and Islamic State.

It demonstrates that foreign aid and Covid relief loans were appropriated on a vast scale by Britain’s enemies, with the money beyond reach and those who took it unpunished.

More than £28bn ended up in the hands of those wishing to harm Britain between 2015 and 2021, according to the report, which was commissioned and produced by the Cabinet Office but was buried during the previous government.

Sources said it was never made public to save the government from the political embarrassment of revealing the huge scale of misdirected funds. telegraph.co.uk


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