(The Center Square) – Florida Attorney General Ashley Moody’s office continues to crack down on retail theft. The AG’s Office of Statewide Prosecution recently charged five members of a crime ring with organized retail theft.
Two in the group are in the country illegally and currently being held under a U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement detainer. Four of the five are in custody, one remains at large.
The group allegedly committed more than 200 thefts over a period of 15 months, causing at least $400,000 in losses to major retail stores.
“This organized crime ring traveled the state, stealing from hundreds of stores and causing hundreds of thousands of dollars in losses to retailers,” Moody said. “Through our proactive statewide strategic efforts, coordinating with law enforcement and retailers, we have dismantled this massive crime ring and now the members will face justice.”
According to the investigation, the crime ring targeted T.J. Maxx, Ulta Beauty, Burlington, Target, Bealls, Kohl’s and other similar stores in 25 counties and 14 judicial districts. The operation involved entering the stores, removing anti-theft tags off of merchandise, placing it in a suitcase or hamper and leaving the stores without paying for it. The group’s goal was to resell the stolen goods, according to the investigation.
They were charged with multiple counts of organized retail theft, unlawful use of a two-way communication device, grand theft and other charges.
The Florida Organized Retail Crime Exchange assisted multiple law enforcement organizations with the case. Members of the crime ring were caught after Moody launched in 2021 the first-of-its-kind, statewide task force and a new interactive database partnering with the Florida Retailers Association. FORCE was launched to identify trends, suspects and take down massive, organized retail theft rings by facilitating the sharing of theft information among retailers, law enforcement and prosecutors.
When FORCE launched, Polk County Sheriff Grady Judd said it would “allow law enforcement and retailers to easily work together and efficiently share information and resources so that we can root out and arrest these thieves and send them to prison where they belong.”
Organized retail theft escalated under the Biden administration with 70% of retailers reporting increased crime and an estimated $30 billion in losses every year.
In her first two years in office, Moody’s OSP filed nearly 60 cases involving more than 250 individuals suspected of organized retail theft or crimes related to organized retail theft.
One of her priorities has involved working with the legislature to advance tough on crime policies. In 2022, this involved Moody leading the charge to address retail theft at the legislative level. By the spring 2024, the legislature had passed multiple bills to enhance public safety she supported. This included enhancing penalties for theft offenders with prior convictions, defining and expanding retail theft crimes and penalties, enhancing penalties for porch piracy, shoplifting, transit fare evasion and other crimes.
Theft rings operate in multiple counties simultaneously causing multiple law enforcement agencies to launch racketeering investigations that uncovered millions of dollars of losses.
In one case, Moody’s office worked with law enforcement officers to nab a crime ring operating in 13 counties involving stealing items customers purchased online and then returning them to other store locations.
In another, her office helped nab a crime ring targeting Home Depot stores in 11 counties, The Center Square reported. In another, they secured sentences and restitution for an organized theft ring operating in 15 counties involving millions of stolen items and murder, The Center Square reported.
Another involved retail theft targeting multiple Walmart stores; yet another targeted 20 retailers causing more than $20 million in losses in a scam were stolen items were resold on Amazon, The Center Square reported.
