A multi-jurisdictional law enforcement operation has led to the arrest of dozens of suspects tied to a string of retail crimes in California.
Amazon Teamsters, Labor Groups Back Legislators' New Warehouse Safety Bill
On Monday, law enforcement in San Mateo County announced that investigations into a string of shoplifting incidents that took place over the past six months have led to 88 arrests.
According to authorities from the Daly City Police Department, the San Bruno Police Department and the San Mateo Police Department, those suspects committed 82 separate crimes since last fall, and their apprehension led to the recovery of 719 stolen items with a collective value of $23,521. Two firearms were also seized during the arrests.
The departments involved came together to form a regional, multi-agency Organized Retail Crime Task Force (ORCTF) last October after being awarded a joint grant from the California Board of State and Community Corrections to tackle rising retail crime in all three cities. The San Mateo Police Department pointed to the frequent targeting of shopping centers by organized retail theft rings when applying for the grant.
“This coordinated investment into combating organized retail theft has resulted in an immediate and impactful return,” San Mateo Police Chief Ed Barberini told a local CBS News affiliate on Monday. “The collaboration between the three police agencies and our partners in the private sector has proven to be extremely effective.”
According to law enforcement, officers in both plain clothes and in uniform participated in the operations. The San Mateo County District Attorney’s office has been assigned to prosecute the crimes. Video released by San Mateo PD this week shows officers pursuing suspects both on foot and in police vehicles through a Target parking lot, culminating in an arrest. Another photo released by law enforcement depicts officers making an arrest in a parking lot next to a Kohl’s store.
“The smart, focused enforcement coupled with enhanced technologies from the ORT Grant is yielding remarkable results,” Chief Ryan Johansen of the San Bruno Police Department added. “I extend my gratitude to the BSCC, San Mateo County DA’s Office, and the Daly City and San Mateo Police Departments for their collaboration.”
A spokesperson for San Mateo PD told Sourcing Journal that the partnership between departments materialized “because in San Mateo County, we each have large shopping centers,” from the Hillsdale Shopping Center in San Mateo to the Serramonte Center in Daly City and the Shops at Tanforan in San Bruno. These commerce hubs house stores like American Eagle, Claire’s, Gap, Old Navy, Victoria’s Secret , Target, Dick’s Sporting Goods and H&M, and have been disproportionately targeted by retail theft rings in recent months.
Five Years After 'Fixing Fashion,' UK Lawmakers Talk Trash
“That’s why we got together, to collaborate with each other, sharing information,” the officer said, noting that the grant supporting the ORCTF is funding personnel, software updates to allow for better communication between departments and extra surveillance cameras, among other tools and expenses.
“I feel that that the amount of calls that we’re getting has gone down since last year… because of the [ORCTF]—no one wants to go steal in a place when they know they’re going to get caught,” he added. “They know that this task force is out there, and they’re going to get prosecuted by our District Attorney’s office. I think that is a pretty big deterrent for them to stay out of San Mateo and San Mateo County.”
San Mateo County supervisor David Canepa has been among the many local lawmakers pushing for tougher policies to combat retail crime in recent months, and he pushed for the formation of the task force last summer. He also recommended revisions to Prop. 47 that would lower the felony threshold for shoplifting.
“The police crackdown on these organized crime groups has been outstanding but my fear is that the perpetrators may walk free the next day without doing any jail time,” Canepa said this week.
Canepa and other local California politicians are now backing the Homelessness, Drug Addiction and Theft Reduction Act , “which will allow district attorney’s offices across the state to charge repeat offenders with felonies” by reforming Prop. 47 and addressing smash-and-grabs as a new crime classification.
The petition has bipartisan endorsements from federal, state and local officials as well as retailers like Target, Walgreens and Walmart, which donated $1 million to the campaign pushing the initiative. The deadline for signatures on the petition is June 27.
Walmart Nixes Self-Checkout at Select Stores
Most Popular
Comments / 0