Brentwood police investigating recent retail thefts
BRENTWOOD, Tenn. (WKRN) — Smash and grab thefts are trending upward in Middle Tennessee. Shoplifters are targeting high end stores in Brentwood and police are working to control the incidents.
Nordstrom Rack, Best Buy, and Home Depot are all among a growing list of retail stores Brentwood police said have been the targets of recent snatch and grabs. Last year, authorities responded to around 120 shoplifting incidents. With a couple of months still left in 2023, there have already been roughly 115 reports shoplifting incidents.
1 arrested, 6 sought for stealing from high end retail stores in Green Hills
“We do have several locations in our city that have been hit more frequently than others. We also have seen an increase in organized retail crime,” said Assistant Police Chief James Colvin with the Brentwood Police Department.
In this month alone, there were reports of two separate shoplifting cases at Nordstrom Rack in less than a week. In one of those incidents, suspects were identified; in the other, police are still searching for those responsible. Authorities said the stores impacted are close to the interstate, which plays a factor.
“It’s very quick access to get to the store and get back on the interstate and be out of our jurisdiction very quickly. Our license plate reader cameras have been a huge help for us. So, we’ve been able to solve a lot of these incidents after they occurred,” said Covin.
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Brentwood police said they’re in constant communication with stores to gather information that can help them not only make arrests, but be proactive.
“We try to make sure our patrol cars are in and out of those parking lots, that our officers are around doing foot patrols inside the business and it’s important, too, that citizens who are shopping in the stores, if they see something, that they call us,” said Covin.
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