SALT LAKE CITY — Retail theft is on the rise across the country but a new Utah task force is hoping to tackle the problem by busting organized rings.
The Utah Attorney General realized the shoplifting problem was growing a started a new squad, The CASE Strike Force, which stands for crimes against the statewide economy.
"We’re taking down organized, retail crime rings,” explained Detective Steve Jensen with the Utah Attorney General's Office.
Over the past several months, the task force has been able to identify and focus on several groups, and they took one down after securing an arrest warrant.
“We have individuals who are called 'boosters,' who will go out and boost or steal the items and they [have] to get them sold," Jensen explained. "So they come to the sellers who buy it, pennies on the dollar and they start taking it in and that’s what’s feeding this frenzy.”
The operation resulted in the seizure of thousands of dollars worth of suspected stolen goods.
"This particular crew, we’re going to be close to $20,000 that we know of within the past few months, that’s when we got involved," Jensen said. "We know they’ve been operating for longer than that.”
Agents say the so-called boosters steal everything from clothing to shoes, purses or anything that can be quickly resold.
Once a stolen product sells, Jensen said the cash usually goes toward substance abuse or addictions.
The goal of the new squad is to break up the bands or organized crime in hopes that it'll send a message that retail theft is not tolerated in the state.
"We partner with the retailers and the retailers are providing police with a lot of support," Jensen said. "So we’re trying to get the momentum going to send a message that we‘re going to get into your organization.”
