I-Team: Thieves Cost Retailers, Shoppers Millions - Cracking down on swap meets in Las Vegas  The mob is long gone from Nevada, but organized crime is alive and well, according to law enforcement. Nationally, organized theft rings are responsible for stealing an estimated $30 to 40 billion worth of merchandise each year. For a long time, Las Vegas ranked in the top 10 of cities hit hardest by organized crime rings, but Nevada retailers are fighting back, and lawmen are mobilizing. A crackdown that started a few weeks ago at a local swap meet is a hint that retailers and lawmen have had enough. Each weekend, the wildly popular Broadacres swap meet is a sea of stuff, with thousands of vendors selling all kinds of things. There are great deals on new bottles of brand name shampoo and toiletries, laundry detergent, diapers, cereal, salad dressing and even cans of paint. (Source 8newsnow.com)

3 On Your Side exposes undercover ORC crime rings - "Saturating" Arizona  CHANDLER, Ariz -- It's not cash or even high-dollar items. Sophisticated crime rings are saturating the Valley, stealing everything from detergent to cosmetics and even liquor. Scenes like this one at a Valley Walgreens where women prop a giant trash cash on top of their cart and clear out cosmetics are taking place nationwide. They target shampoos, liquor, anything that really has a value on the street," explained Darin Fredrickson, the director of operations for Team Guardian, a company specializing in investigations and security surveillance. But given the nature of his job, we agreed to digitize Fredrickson's face. 3TV is taking you inside the underground world of organized retail crime. It's where criminals walk freely into stores, walk out with thousands of dollars of merchandise and are making a fortune. (Source azfamily.com)






'Virtual Factory' of Fraud Discovered in LIRR Credit Card Scam in Long Island, N.Y. - 4 Romanians busted  When police arrested a couple for planting cameras and credit card skimmers on Long Island Railroad ticket machines, they discovered a "virtual factory" for credit card fraud. An apartment the couple allegedly worked from contained cameras, skimmers, memory cards, credit cards, and two flash drives full of account numbers. Four Romanian nationals, including a married couple, were arrested. (Source nymag.com) (Source longislandpress.com)




Three Arrested In Beaverton, Oregon For Counterfeit Credit Cards
Beaverton police arrested three California residents last week in what has been described as a major counterfeit credit card bust. Officers said they discovered more than 200 counterfeit credit cards, gift cards, fake driver's licenses and merchandise from businesses around the Portland area. Investigators said the merchandise was purchased with the counterfeit credit cards. (Source newsradiocentraloregon.com)

Portland-area retailers among California credit card fraud suspects’ targets  Authorities seized hundreds of items from a rented SUV during arrests in an alleged credit card fraud case at the Portland International Airport on Oct. 23. An investigation into the alleged credit card fraud led to the arrests of Daviel M. Brown, 28, of Oakland, Calif.; Robert L. Brown, 35, of Oakland, Calif.; and Blake Littles, 23, of Pixley, Calif., at Portland International Airport on Oct. 23, said Officer Mike Rowe, a Beaverton police spokesman. The trio was arrested while trying to exchange their rented SUV, according to a probable cause affidavit. Exactly how many businesses were hit, how much in alleged fraudulent purchases the three made or duration of the the operation are still under investigation. (Source oregonlive.com)

"Criminal enterprise" busted in Boston - operating out of cell phone store - unloading cell phones overseas  According to the investigation Andre, who was previously employed at a Hanover mobile phone store, used fraudulent identities to open up multiple new cell phone accounts. He then allegedly purchased more than 90 new cell phones on those accounts at a reduced price. Authorities allege that Andre was involved in a separate incident involving the theft of more than 100 cell phones from the same Hanover store. Andre allegedly orchestrated the May 15, 2011 theft of the cell phones with help from Khary James and Kenny Barron, who were indicted in October 2012 for their alleged participation. James, Baron and Andre allegedly planned to sell the stolen mobile phones to David Yousheei, who in turn planned to sell them mainly overseas. David Yousheei was previously indicted in July in connection with possession of counterfeit money, credit card fraud and drug offenses and Aaron Yousheei was indicted in connection with credit card fraud. (Source wickedlocal.com)

Thieves stealing baby formula - St. Louis is sees uptick in ORC
Police around the country are seeing an uptick in baby formula thefts. It’s not because people are trying to feed their children, a lot of thieves are stealing it to feed their drug habit. A container of formula can cost around $20. “It is very easy to dispose of and you can’t track it,” St. Louis County Police Chief Tim Fitch said. “So what they will do is take it and sell it on a street corner themselves or take it to a mom and pop grocery and sell it to them and resell it.” (Source q13fox.com)

Man charged with grand larceny for baby formula thefts in Clifton Park, N.Y.
37-year-old Danny Sanchez is accused of working with an unidentified male suspect to steal quantities of baby formula from the Wilton Price Chopper on Sept. 12 and Oct. 21, and was wanted on those charges when he was arrested last Wednesday. (Source saratogian.com)



Female busted stealing 170 bottles of nail polish from Walmart store in Freehold, N.J. after hitting CVS for 199 bottles  A CVS employee in Linden told police that she saw a woman, later identified as Raykowski, place 119 bottles of Essie nail color, valued at $1,055, in a bag and leave the store without paying for the items. Walmart store manager recognized her picture in a news report about her arrest on charges she shoplifted nail polish in Linden and notified police as well. (Source app.com)


Two California credit card fraudsters try hitting stores in Orem, Utah for tens of thousands with fake cards - busted  On Oct. 31 at about 12:30 p.m., an Orem police officer responded to a credit card fraud call at the Best in Music in Orem where a man allegedly purchased $10,000 worth of guitars with fraudulent credit cards, police said. The man was described as a heavyset, Hispanic male who was driving a white SUV with California plates. According to Lt. Craig Martinez of the Orem Police Department, while the responding officer was out on this call, dispatch informed him of a similar case that was currently in progress at the Summerhays Music in Orem. When officers responded to the call at Summerhays Music, they arrested Robert Richardson, 24, from California. Upon investigation, Lt. Martinez said that Richardson and a second man, Marc Martinez, 33, were allegedly working together as they traveled away from California. As the pair traveled, they were allegedly stealing identities, making fraudulent credit cars and using the cards to make tens of thousands of dollars in purchases, according to police. (Source credit-card-bank.biz)