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Nearly $2M In Stolen Merchandise Seized In SoCal Organized Crime Ring Bust

LOS ANGELES (CBSLA) – Four people were arrested and close to $2 million in merchandise stolen from dozens of Southern California stores was seized in a bust on an organized crime ring last month.

Nearly $2M In Stolen Merchandise Seized In SoCal Organized Crime Ring Bust
Merchandise seized by California Highway Patrol investigators in an investigation into an organized merchandise theft ring in Southern California. Sept. 13, 2021. (CHP)

California Highway Patrol reported Monday that security with TJX Companies Inc. – the parent company of TJ Maxx, Marshalls and HomeGoods -- discovered that their stores across Southern California were being repeatedly hit by a group of shoplifters and contacted the CHP Border Division's Organized Retail Crime Taskforce.

Investigators traced the stolen goods to a mobile home in Midway City in Orange County.

On Aug. 31 they raided the home, where they discovered "stolen merchandise packed nearly floor to ceiling," CHP said in a news release.

CHP investigators also discovered four self-storage units linked to the home with even more stolen merchandise. All the merchandise still had the store tags in place.

The stolen merchandise was valued at a little over $1.9 million. It had been stolen from 43 different stores.

Investigators also recovered $65,000 in cash, CHP reports.

Thirty-six-year-old Jaime Mendoza, 31-year-old Maritza Guerrero both of Anaheim, along with 48-year-old Yolanda De la Rosa and 55-year-old Jaime De la Rosa, both of Midway City, were arrested.

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