JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – A new Organized Retail Theft Task Force initiative, announced Friday by Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier, is designed to help coordinate prosecutions across multiple jurisdictions for those who participate in retail theft rings.
The AG’s news conference took place at a Jacksonville Home Depot, and Uthmeier used a recent crackdown of an organized retail theft ring targeting Home Depot stores as an example of why the task force is needed.
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Uthmeier explained that those involved in large retail theft rings often commit crimes in multiple jurisdictions to take advantage of the difficulties that creates for prosecutors to work together to bring cases.
“We’re going to use our authority and the Office of Statewide Prosecution to bridge the gap,” Uthmeier said. “Working together with the Retail Federation and investigators, we’re going to cut red tape, streamline the process and make it a lot easier to secure long-term convictions.”
Assistant Statewide Prosecutor Jonathan Bridges said in his decade with the agency, he’s seen a dramatic uptick in organized retail crime.
“Some people call them boosters. We can just call them thieves,” Bridges said. “They treat shoplifting like a job. We’ve seen cases where they get up in the morning and travel from their home and hit retail stores where they steal consumer goods in multiple counties, in multiple regions and parts of the state.”
Bridges said these theft rings have become more brazen, thinking that stealing in multiple jurisdictions would get them “a slap on the wrist from each county.”
But, he said, a recently passed statute increases punishments for those involved in organized retail theft.
“It provides retailers, law enforcement, and prosecutors with a powerful tool in the fight against these thieves. What before might have resulted in a slap on the wrist is now an offense that’s punishable by significant prison time,” Bridges said.
During the news conference, Uthmeier partnered with Florida Retail Federation CEO R. Scott Shalley to sign a memorandum of understanding between the statewide organization and law enforcement that will better equip investigators to crack down on retail theft.
“We’re handing out long-term sentences to the slammer. We’re going to put people away for a long time,” Uthmeier said. “We’re going to send a message here in Florida: If you engage in crime, you are absolutely going to pay for it for a very long time.”
Statewide Prosecutor Brad McVay said retail theft goes beyond shoplifting and ultimately can result in higher prices for average consumers.
“Oftentimes, these are sophisticated criminal enterprises that steal millions of dollars from our businesses. They fuel drug trafficking, endanger employees of the businesses, and they endanger customers,” McVay said.
Uthmeier explained that prices go up when companies have to make up for the loss of stolen goods and when they have to make up for the added expense of more resources that have to go toward security and investigations.
“So you suffer. And that’s why we’ve got to hold these bad guys accountable," Uthmeier said.
McVay said that as part of the task force, six prosecutors from his office will be assigned to work hand-in-hand with law enforcement to ensure continuity across jurisdiction, expertise and “maximum impact.”
“We’re going to focus on the worst offenders. We’re going to look for long-term prison sentences and make sure that we dismantle the organizations at the head,” McVay said. “I think this sends a clear message to thieves in Florida that organized retail theft will not be tolerated.”
Jacksonville Sheriff T.K. Waters said that, in his opinion, “there’s nothing worse than a thief.”
He said the task force will help local agencies to work across jurisdictions and keep investigations under a larger umbrella, rather than handling them piecemeal.
“By building cases that group related retail thefts into organized criminal schemes, investigators can arrest thieves for more serious charges and prosecutors can seek tougher sentences,” Waters said. “This is a win for both the Jacksonville business owner and the consumer.”