Lansing, IL: Crash And Grab Burglars Raid Store In $28,000 Pre-Dawn Heist
An SUV plowed through the front of a store in south suburban Lansing early Monday, and a group of thieves inside made off with thousands of dollars’ worth of designer jeans. Around 3:45 a.m., an SUV rammed through the front of Tops & Bottoms, at 16711 Torrence Av. While the theft took only minutes to carry out, the crooks clearly had been planning the heist for a while. Store owners said the five young men in the SUV immediately went for the most expensive merchandise inside. “A $400 pair of jeans, 70 pairs is like $28,000 just right there; and, plus, the major loss is the construction,” he said. Kassim said the store has been open about a month, and thieves have been trying to get inside almost the entire time. cbslocal.com

Bullhead City, AZ: Two accused of switching merchandise in shoplift scheme
Jonathan Brown and Jon Mitchell are accused of using "bait-and-switch" techniques to steal electronic items from two local stores. The investigation began with an Aug. 17 report by employees at Walmart, that a man had removed a fan from its box and replaced it with a computer and video surveillance system, police spokeswoman Emily Fromelt said. Police later identified Brown as the suspect, through surveillance video and fingerprints on the empty computer box left behind in the store. Brown then paid $31.74 for the fan box, and failed to pay for the electronics, valued at $778, Fromelt said. Tuesday, she said, employees at Sam's Club reported that they had found an empty television box in an aisle. Surveillance video showed a man putting the television and other electronics inside a large empty box that had contained foam cups. The man paid for the cups and failed to pay for the concealed merchandise, valued at about $700. Wednesday, Fromelt said, Sam's Club employees discovered that Brown and Mitchell had placed about $877 worth of electronic items inside empty cup and paper towel boxes. Thursday, police served a search warrant at the pair's residence. Some stolen electronic items, the boxes used to conceal merchandise and drug paraphernalia were found in the home, and detectives learned that some of the stolen merchandise had been traded for heroin. mohavedailynews.com

Linden, NJ: Two men steal $2,000 of jeans from Kohl's; suspects in several other thefts  On Aug. 26, loss prevention personnel from Kohl's reported to police that a male was observed placing 42 pairs of Levi blue jeans, valued at $1,973, in a shopping cart. The male pushed the shopping cart near a rear emergency entrance door and then walked out the front door of the store. Moments later, a second male entered the store and went to the shopping cart, opened the rear door and pushed the cart outside to a waiting vehicle, where the jeans were loaded and the suspect fled the scene, police said. Loss Prevention told police that the thieves are part of an organized ring that has hit several stores in Hudson and Morris counties. mycentraljersey.com


Bristol, VT: Man convicted of 50 retail thefts faces new charges
Investigators determined Sargent consumed stolen liquor, hard cider and raw meat before he passed out. They said the items were reported stolen from a Rite Aid Pharmacy, Shaw's Supermarket and Bristol Discount Beverage. Sargent was arrested after he was released from the hospital and asked officers about property police had taken from the scene of the original incident. He was charged with retail theft and held at the Chittenden Correctional Center. Officers said Sargent has been convicted on similar charges 50 other times. wptz.com

The Hague, Netherlands: Chinese thirst for Netherland's baby formula dries up stocks; ties to Organized Retail Crime  Dutch baby formula is such a prized commodity in China that shelves in the Netherlands are running dry amid a thriving black market. There have been 900 thefts of formula in the past year, Dutch police spokeswoman Lisette van Bale said. "Demand is greater than supply and that makes for a lucrative trade for criminals." With formula selling in China for as much as five times the Dutch store price, organized crime has gotten into the act. The run on Dutch milk products dates to 2008, when the Chinese government disclosed that one of the country's biggest dairy producers had been watering down formula and adding melamine - an industrial compound used in manufacturing plastics and adhesives. Six children died of kidney failure, another 53,000 were hospitalized with kidney damage or other illnesses and an estimated 300,000 were sickened. The Netherlands is not the only country impacted by surging Chinese demand for baby formula. Irish, Danish and New Zealand dairies have felt the impact of the market implosion. usatoday.com

Lake Havasu, AZ: 3 charged with organized retail theft from Havasu's Walmart

Cheltenham Twp, PA: A man attempted to steal $210.47 worth of baby formula from Target on Aug. 17