Retail theft ring targeted Home Depot, Lowe’s, CHP says

LOS ANGELES – Authorities have arrested three people and seized roughly $500,000 worth of merchandise stolen from home improvement stores in Southern California, the California Highway Patrol announced on Tuesday.

54-year-old Jose Rivera, 43-year-old Fernando Hernandez, and 45-year-old Rogelio Ramirez Salgado face charges including organized retail theft, receiving stolen property and weapons-related offenses.

On Dec. 11, investigators assigned to CHP’s Organized Retail Crime Task Force raided a hardware and plumbing supply business on S. Central Avenue in L.A. where they discovered a massive stockpile of stolen goods, officials said.

Items recovered included small tools, buckets of paint, extension ladders, and plumbing fixtures, along with larger and more expensive items such as water heaters and furnaces which, authorities say, were taken by various “boosters” from the home improvement stores.

CHP says investigators also recovered five firearms and approximately $30,000 in cash.

The search warrant was the result of a month-long investigation.

In August, California Gov. Gavin Newsom announced that the state would triple CHP resources assigned to retail theft cases in the L.A. area.

The governor’s announcement followed a similar one made hours earlier by Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass and other local leaders which established a new organized retail theft task force to crack down on “flash mob“-style burglaries.

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