California to spend $267 million to combat ‘blatant’ shoplifting

California will spend $267 million to help dozens of local law enforcement agencies increase patrols, purchase surveillance equipment and conduct other activities aimed at cracking down on thefts occurring across the state.

Officials from the California Highway Patrol and police agencies in San Francisco and Los Angeles made the announcement Friday. It follows a series of brazen robberies at luxury stores in recent months, where dozens of people enter a store and begin robbing en masse.

Videos of the incidents spread quickly online and fueled critics who argue that California takes too lax an approach to crime.

“Enough of these brazen attacks and robberies – we are ensuring law enforcement agencies have the resources they need to take down these criminals,” Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom said in a statement about the grants.

The spending comes from a pot of money that Newsom first requested in late 2021, after signing legislation to reestablish a state task force that would focus on investigating organized theft rings. The money will be provided through grants to 55 agencies, including local police departments, sheriff’s offices and district attorney’s offices.

The grants, which will be distributed over the next three years, will help local law enforcement agencies create investigative units, increase foot patrol, purchase advanced surveillance technology and equipment, as well as crack down on vehicle and converter theft catalysts, a problem that has become rampant in the Bay Area. The money would also help fund units in district attorney’s offices dedicated to prosecuting these crimes.

“Enough of these brazen attacks and robberies – we are ensuring law enforcement agencies have the resources they need to take down these criminals,” California Governor Gavin Newsom said in a statement.
Thieves at Nordstrom in Los Angeles last month.A crushing and robbery incident at a Los Angeles-area Nordstrom last month went viral. Los Angeles Police Department PIO
Nordstrom store in Los AngelesThe Nordstrom store suffered losses of between $60,000 and $100,000.abc7

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California Highway Patrol Commissioner Sean Duryee called the money “a game changer.”

“This is a considerable investment that will be a force multiplier when it comes to combating organized retail crime in California,” he said at a news conference Friday.

Retailers in California and other US cities, including Chicago and Minneapolis, have recently been targeted by large-scale robberies when groups of people show up in groups for mass shoplifting events or to enter stores and vandalize and steal from display cases.

Nordstrom robbers use bear spray on security guard.Thieves at Nordstrom use bear spray on a security guard. LAPD

Several dozen people participated in a brazen smash-and-grab flash mob at a Nordstrom store in the Westfield Topanga shopping center last month. Authorities said bear spray was used on a security guard, the Los Angeles Times reported, and the store suffered losses of between $60,000 and $100,000.

The video showed a chaotic scene, with masked robbers running through the store, one of them dragging a display case behind them. They smashed shop windows and seized expensive merchandise, such as luxury handbags and designer clothing, as they fled.

Other luxury shopping centers have been similarly affected in recent years. Lately, a Gucci store and an Yves Saint Laurent store were major targets in the Los Angeles area, prompting authorities to announce a new task force to investigate the crimes.

“No Angeleno should feel like it is unsafe to shop in Los Angeles,” Mayor Karen Bass said last month in announcing the new task force. “No entrepreneur should feel like it’s unsafe to open a business.”

Since 2019, law enforcement in California has arrested more than 1,250 people and recovered $30.7 million in stolen merchandise, the governor’s office said.

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The new funding is essential to help authorities respond to large-scale organized crimes that could turn violent, said Los Angeles Sheriff’s Deputy Holly Francisco.

Police in front of a Louis Vuitton store in San FranciscoFunding will be provided through grants to 55 agencies, including local police departments, sheriff’s offices and district attorney’s offices. Above, a Louis Vuitton store in San Francisco.AP

“Recently, we’ve seen suspects use firearms, pepper spray and bear spray to defend themselves from employees or loss prevention officers and just cause chaos for people shopping there,” he said Friday. “Our goal is to reduce the number of retail thefts and actively investigate all criminals involved.”

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Source: vtt.edu.vn

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