California will be spending hundreds of millions of dollars to crack down on smash-and-grab thefts, marking the state’s largest investment to combat such crime.
The state will be sending over $267 million to 55 cities and counties in an effort to crack down on arrests and prosecutions for organized retail crime.
Funds for the Organized Retail Theft Grant Program were approved by the Board of State and Community Corrections and will be dispersed to 55 local law enforcement agencies across the state.
County law enforcement agencies receiving funds include: Orange County, Los Angeles County, Riverside County, Sacramento County, San Mateo County, Santa Clara County, and Ventura County.
City law enforcement agencies receiving funds include: Anaheim, Bakersfield, Beverly Hills, Brea, Campbell, Chula Vista, Citrus Heights, Coalinga, Costa Mesa, Daly City, Delano, Fremont, Fresno, Garden Grove, Hemet, Irvine, Los Angeles, Modesto, National City, Newark, Palm Springs, Palo Alto, Roseville, Salinas, San Fernando, San Francisco, San Jose, San Ramon, Santa Monica, Santa Rosa, and Vacaville.
A group of flash mob robbers raiding a Nordstrom at the Westfield Topanga mall on Aug. 12, 2023 and video of a group of thieves ransacking a Nordstrom Rack in Riverside on July 10, 2023. (TNLA, Riverside Police Department) 
Video shows the thieves rushing through the main floor of the Topanga Mall Nordstrom grabbing tens of thousands of dollars’ worth of items, and then running out the door. Aug. 12, 2023. (TNLA) 
A group of thieves who were caught on camera robbing a Nike store in East Los Angeles were arrested on August 17, 2023. (California Highway Patrol, Citizen) 
Things took a turn when the employees “engaged the suspect” according to El Monte police, and a struggle ensued. (Instagram/@SGV) 
Nearly $200,000 worth of stolen merchandise from Victoria’s Secret and CVS stores were recovered while suspects tried to sell the items in downtown L.A. (Los Angeles Police Department) 
Nearly $200,000 worth of stolen merchandise from Victoria’s Secret and CVS stores were recovered while suspects tried to sell the items in downtown L.A. (Los Angeles Police Department) 
A group of thieves who were caught on camera robbing a Nike store in East Los Angeles were arrested on August 17, 2023. (California Highway Patrol) 
Security cameras captured burglars ransacking a Beverly Hills wig shop and escaping with almost $200,000 worth of wigs meant for cancer patients. (The Wig Fairy) 
Thieves seen smashing display cases at Jewelers On Time in Newport Beach, and making off with hundreds of thousands of dollars worth of watches on Sept. 8, 2023. (KTLA) 
Security video captured a mob of thieves ransacking a Nordstrom Rack in Riverside and escaping with thousands of dollars worth of designer handbags. (Riverside Police Department) 
The thieves crashed through the front of the jewelry store with a car and began smashing display cases. July 1, 2023. (La Verne Police) 
Security video captured two suspects walking into a store, assaulting employees and stealing merchandise in San Bernardino. (San Bernardino Police Department) 
Video captured a mob of thieves swarming a Nordstrom in Canoga Park as they cleared out the store during a destructive robbery on August 12, 2023. (TNLA) 
A group of flash mob robbers raiding a Nordstrom at the Westfield Topanga mall on Aug. 12, 2023 and video of a group of thieves ransacking a Nordstrom Rack in Riverside on July 10, 2023. (TNLA, Riverside Police Department)
The funding will be used to create:
-Fully staffed retail theft investigative units
-Increase arrests
-Install advanced surveillance technology
-Train loss prevention officers
-Create new task forces
-Increase cooperation with businesses and the community
-Target criminals in blitz operations
-Crack down on vehicle and catalytic converter theft
Thirteen district attorneys’ offices across California will receive up to $2.05 million each. The funding will be used to establish new vertical prosecution units, teams dedicated to prosecuting organized retail theft, and to establish county-wide “intelligence centers” which will serve as prosecution hubs for all related investigations.
Funds will be allocated in annual installments over the next three years.
The funds’ disbursement comes on the heels of a troubling rise in violent thefts including smash-and-grab and flash mob-style robberies across Southern California.
The continuing thefts prompted the creation of L.A. County’s Organized Retail Crime Taskforce in August to stop the rising number of group robberies targeting retailers.
The task force is comprised of several local and federal law enforcement agencies and will not only focus on the suspects robbing retailers, but also on those who purchase the stolen goods online, officials said.
Other types of property crime the funds will tackle also include vehicle and catalytic converter thefts.
In 2019, the California Highway Patrol’s retail crime taskforce recovered $30.7 million in stolen merchandise, conducted more than 1,850 investigations and arrested over 1,250 individuals statewide.
