Thirteen East Bay residents arrested by CHP in Northern California retail theft ring investigation

SACRAMENTO — Thirteen East Bay residents, including 12 from Oakland, have been criminally charged and more than 44,000 stolen merchandise items were recovered following an operation targeting an organized retail theft network operating across Northern California, the California Highway Patrol said Tuesday.

According to a CHP news release, an investigation began in September when the CHP’s Valley Division Organized Retail Crime Task Force was alerted to a pair of retail theft suspects who stole merchandise in Placer County and at other locations throughout the state. The task force includes investigators from the CHP, Sacramento Police Department and the Placer County District Attorney’s Office.

In October, a traffic stop in Rocklin yielded information that helped identify suspects who had been seen buying stolen merchandise and selling it for profit.

Investigators also learned the stolen goods were being distributed and sold at flea markets in Oakland, San Jose, Galt, Modesto and Stockton, possibly since February of 2024, according to court records.

Based on the information, task force investigators conducted surveillance and established links among the theft suspects, those purchasing and reselling the stolen merchandise, and the flea-market distribution locations, the release said.

Investigators obtained multiple search warrants covering six residences, three storage lockers, and one storage lot. On December 11, a multi-agency enforcement effort dubbed “Operation Silent Night” was executed in Oakland, Richmond, San Leandro, and Galt, resulting in the arrest of the 13 suspects. Authorities did not specify the addresses where the warrants were executed.

Investigators also seized more than 400 boxes and 200 bags of stolen merchandize, including cosmetics, household goods, clothing, power tools, toys, alcohol and diapers, as well as two firearms, more than $10,000 in cash, five vans, two passenger vehicles and two trailers.

The next day, authorities used an exposition hall at Sacramento’s Cal Expo fairgrounds to process and catalog the recovered merchandise. Investigators, working with affected retailers, documented a total of 44,140 stolen items, valued in excess of $800,000.

The suspects are men and women ranging in age from 19 to 53. Twelve are from Oakland and the other resides in El Sobrante.

They were charged Dec. 15 by the Placer County District Attorney’s Office with a total of 11 felony counts, including organized retail theft, conspiracy to commit a crime and receiving stolen property.

They have all pleaded not guilty to the charges and are due in court Jan. 23 for setting of a preliminary hearing. All but one of the suspects is out of custody, having either made bail or being released on their own recognizance.

CHP Valley Division Chief Tyler Eccles said of the investigation that “organized retail theft is not a victimless crime. It impacts businesses, workers, and communities across California. This investigation highlights the strength of collaboration between law enforcement and our retail partners, and our commitment to holding organized theft networks accountable.”

Since the CHP launched its Organized Retail Crime Task Force operations statewide in 2019, there have been more than 4,200 investigations leading to the arrests of more than 4,700 suspects and the recovery of nearly 1.5 million stolen goods valued at more than $68.7 million.