Shoplifting Crackdown Pays Off In South Jersey Town
GLOUCESTER TWP, N.J. (CBS) - Shoplifting…it's not just a petty crime anymore. Not in the eyes of one South Jersey community, anyway.
In fact, police in Gloucester Township, Camden County are likening one scheme to organized crime.
Four New York men were picked up at the outlet complex a week and a half ago with several thousand dollars worth of merchandise, a laptop computer and data for stolen credit card numbers. Police say they used card after card at stores until one worked.
"They were buying a large amount of merchandise with the stolen credit card numbers," Lieutenant Brian McKendry told KYW Newsradio. "And then we learned that they were going to actually take everything back to New York city and they were eventually going to ship down to the Dominican Republic for resale down there."
The township has a specifically assigned retail theft detective who's been working with store owners to help curb the overall shoplifting problem.
"It is becoming more of an organized effort because there's money to be made by doing it," McKendry said, "and, unfortunately, the victims left are me and you and the public when our credit card numbers are stolen."
The four suspects are charged with theft by deception, receiving stolen property and conspiracy.