INVESTIGATIVE REPORT Organized Retail Crime Hits Gulf Coast Area Hard
INVESTIGATIVE REPORT
PART ONE
DAPHNE Ala.
By Rick McCann
February 18, 2025
Most shoppers know that the cost of products being sold at their local stores increases for many different reasons such as transportation and production increases, wages and sometimes even the cost of fuel, but few people understand the toll that shoplifting, especially, organized retail thefts take on retailers.
Organized retail theft causes stores to lose millions of dollars of revenue every year and that includes locally, in Baldwin and Mobile County.
Theft at our area stores occurs daily, and major thefts, classified as organized, cost area stores millions of dollars of lost revenue annually.
The City of Daphne for instance has no shopping malls, only a few shopping centers and a handful of big box or specialty stores, yet retail theft is one of the leading crimes that police must contend with almost every day.
On February 5th, 2025, at 7:30 p.m., police were called to the Target Store located at 1698 US-98, for a theft of a large quantity of items.
Police reported that 16 pieces of merchandise was concealed by a person who fled the store with the unpaid merchandise.
Earlier in the day, police responded to the same store for another theft. It was reported that a person left the store without paying for seven pieces of jewelry.
On February 12th, at approximately 2:35 p.m., Daphne police responded to a theft in progress at the Dollar General store located at 20000 block of US Hwy 98.
Store employees reported that a number of items were shoplifted here as well.
On the next day, the police responded to the Sam’s Club, 20000 block of Frederick Blvd, where a felony amount of merchandise was taken, classifying it as a “Retail 2nd Degree Theft.”
In Alabama, retail theft in the second degree is a Class C felony that involves stealing between $500 and $2,500 worth of merchandise.
On the second day of the new year, Daphne police were called to the Lowe’s Store at 20000 block of Frederick Blvd, where a lawnmower and a weed trimmer were taken. Another felony theft where the merchandise exceeded more than $1000.
Police were dispatched to the Target Store on US 98 at 9:22 p.m., January 9th, 2025, for a theft involving a number of different pieces of merchandise including:
Jacket
Men’s Underwear
Bluetooth speaker
2 Long Sleeve Men’s Shirt
Gaming headset
2 Necklaces
2 Earrings
Officers also responded to another theft in January at the Target Store on Saturday, January 11th, at 12:15 p.m.
This times store representatives reported that the following items had been stolen:
7 Football Related Video Games
Police classified this incident as an “Organized Retail Theft.”
Another theft occurred at the store on January 15th, 2025, at around 7 p.m.
In this incident, the police were told that the following items were taken:
Game Console
Controller
Gaming Headset
Gaming steering wheel and pedals
Gaming Headset
On January 20th, 2025, at 11:13 a.m., the Daphne Police received a call about a theft at an area liquor store.
Officers respond to the 2000 block of US Hwy 98, #7 (Top Shelf Liquor).
Here, the store employee told police that the following items had been stolen
Alcohol; Hennessy VS 750ml
Alcohol; Hennesy 1.75 Lt
Alcohol; Dusse Cognac 750Ml
Alcohol; Don Julio Anejo 750Ml
Alcohol; Don Julio Resosado 750Ml
There was no report of an arrest in the liquor theft.
Police in Daphne also responded to a theft of several gaming consoles at the Walmart on US 98 on January 27, 2025, at 2:25 p.m.
Shoplifters also hit Dick’s Sporting Goods on Wednesday, January 29th at around 3:45 p.m.
It was reported that the following items had been stolen during theft:
Joggers, fleece
Hoodie, fleece
Cup, 30oz
Cup, 40oz
Cup, 40oz
Tote bag, large
The Daphne police are routinely dispatched each month to the Walmart on US 98, Target Store on US 98, Daphne Ulta Beauty Store & Hair Salon located in the Jubilee Square and to several other retailers located in the city.
Organized Retail Theft has become a multi-billion-dollar crime that’s causing businesses to close and the cost of goods to skyrocket.
Michelle Mack allegedly recruited women to steal for her and would then sell the goods on Amazon, raking in almost $2m in 2022
The U.S. Chamber of Commerce estimates that ORC costs the U.S. economy more than $125 billion annually.
In 2022, the National Retail Federation (NRF) estimated that retail crime cost the industry over $112 billion.
The NRF’s annual survey found that ORC costs retailers an average of $719,548 for every billion dollars in sales.
Locally, a Pensacola man has been accused of stealing more than $20K in merchandise from Walmart stores across the Southeast.
Some stores don’t even call police when a theft has occurred. In some situations, store managers believe that the left was a one-time thing or calling the police won’t get their merchandise back.
Many big box stores such as Target, Walmart, Dillard’s and others have long employed retail loss prevention staff to watch both the customer and the employees, and to apprehend and prosecute those that steal from the stores.
In Part Two of our Investigative Report, we’ll look at other areas of Baldwin and Mobile Counties that have long had a theft problem and what they have or have not done about it.
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