California cops uncovered a treasure trove of stolen goods worth $9.5million and now two people face charges for their alleged connection to a cargo theft ring.
Manuel Alfredo Revolorio and Alondra Ramirez Cruz were arrested for their possible connection to stolen items from big box retailers, which were later recovered by authorities on November 21.
The duo has been charged with grand theft, cargo theft and conspiracy.
Authorities recovered shoes, clothing, electronics, perishables and other goods, stolen from over a dozen unidentified big box retailers in the area.
Manuel Alfredo Revolorio and Alondra Ramirez Cruz were arrested for their alleged connection to the $9.5 million worth of stolen items, which were later recovered by authorities on November 21
The items were found after detectives from the California Highway Patrol’s Southern Division Theft Interdiction Program searched multiple locations in Los Angeles
The items were found after detectives from the California Highway Patrol’s Southern Division Theft Interdiction Program searched multiple locations in Los Angeles.
Companies are still trying to estimate the actual value of stock stolen.
A CHP news release read: 'It is currently estimated more than $9.5 million in stolen product was recovered; however, victim companies are still calculating the total losses sustained.'
CTIP detectives also believe that Revolorio is associated with one of their earlier investigations from this February where they recovered over $9 million in stolen property.
Retail theft has spiked across the country, including in California as video shows groups raiding stores and trucks in planned thefts.
This week, a swarm of teenagers swiped $12,000 worth of goods from a Los Angeles Nike store in a 'flash rob mob' that was caught on video.
Authorities recovered shoes, clothing, electronics, perishables and other goods, stolen from over a dozen unidentified big box retailers in the area
The duo has been charged with grand theft, cargo theft and conspiracy
CTIP detectives also believe that Revolorio is associated with one of their earlier investigations from this February where they recovered over $9 million in stolen property
Over a dozen thieves flooded the Nike Community Store on South Alameda Street.
Footage shows them filling trash bags with boxes of sneakers and hurrying around the store, their arms brimming with clothing, as shoppers look on hopelessly.
Several of the teens conceal their faces behind black masks. One is sporting a pair of yellow gloves.
The LAPD singled out 17 suspects. One was identified by their 'distinct' sweatshirt featuring a bonsai tree logo and the words 'Ritual of the Spirit.'
A police press release describes the suspects as 'four females and 13 males, black, ranging in age from 15 to 20-years-old.'
The teens fled in five vehicles including a tan Infiniti four-door, a gray KIA SUV, a white Honda, a KIA four-door and a black Audi.
A swarm of at least 17 teenagers stole around $12,000 worth of goods from the Nike Community Store on South Alameda Street in Los Angeles
A press release from the Los Angeles Police Department describes the suspects as 'four females and 13 males, Black, ranging in age from 15 to 20-years-old'
In September, a group of 'flash rob' thieves stormed into a Los Angeles Macy's department store at Northridge Mall on Sunday morning as they filled bags with $20,000 worth of perfume.
Cellphone video of the crime showed several men dressed in dark hoodies and blue medical face masks loading up bags of what appeared to be cologne and perfume merchandise.
Los Angeles Police Department officers responded to the incident just after the robbery.
According to The Ocean County Register, police believe that five to ten male suspects were involved and fled in an unlicensed black Infinity.
Los Angeles County currently has the highest commercial robbery rate in the state, according to the Public Policy Institute of California,
In 2022, the state saw a 28.7 percent leap from the low rates of the pandemic years.
As the robbers in this most recent Macy's heist tried to get away with black and white garbage bags full of luxury perfumes, other shoppers attempted to chase them down
While the shoplifting rate remains below pre-pandemic levels, this does not account for other types of retail theft like commercial burglary.
After seeing a 5.8 percent increase last year, the rate for this type of theft is 15.7 percent higher than in 2019.
This figure includes lost product costs, higher insurance costs, increased price of goods and unrealized wages.
Law enforcement has embarked on a statewide crackdown on organized retail theft, which is expected to cost the state over $19 billion this year.
CargoNet also recorded 582 cargo theft robberies across the United States and Canada in the second quarter of 2023.
This was a 57% increase when compared to the same quarter in 2022.
Thieves have stolen over $44 million in shipments in the second quarter of 2023, and the average shipment value per event increased nearly $100,000 to $260,703 as cargo thieves focused on high-value shipments.
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