California Kohl's store sees $2K in merchandise stolen: report
Four suspects were caught on video casually leaving with the items in hand
A team of thieves was caught on camera as they nabbed thousands of dollars' worth of merchandise from a Kohl's department store in California, according to a recent report.
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The store in northwest Fresno was reportedly targeted by the brazen thieves on Friday amid a string of thefts hitting major stores around the country.
| Ticker | Security | Last | Change | Change % |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| KSS | KOHL'S CORP. | 14.99 | +0.25 | +1.70% |
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Before entering the store, the suspects got out of a gold GMC Yukon, KMPH reported, citing the Fresno Police Department.
Someone shopping at at Kohl's department store. (Photographer: Daniel Acker/Bloomberg via Getty Images) (Daniel Acker/Bloomberg via Getty Images / Getty Images)
Video footage of the incident then shows the suspects grabbing several items as they casually walked around the store.
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They reportedly left with over $2,000 worth of merchandise.
Kohl's is one of many major retailers being targeted by organized retail crime. Others include Home Depot, Rite Aid, CVS, Target, Whole Foods, Sam's Club and Walgreens.
Overall, companies are losing an average of $719,548 per $1 billion dollars in sales due to organized retail crime, according to the National Retail Federation.
To combat the growing problem, companies have been working to step up security measures.
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Steve Francis, executive associate director for Homeland Security Investigations, said last fall that these crimes are creating more violent attacks in retail stores nationwide.
"Many of the criminal rings orchestrating these thefts are also involved in other serious criminal activity such as human trafficking, narcotics trafficking, weapon trafficking," Francis said, adding that "tackling this growing threat is important to the safety of store employees, customers, and communities across the country."
Neither Kohl's nor the Fresno Police Department responded to FOX Business' requests for comment.