Police bust cargo theft ring
New Jersey State Police say they’ve dismantled a cargo theft trafficking ring and recovered more than $1 million worth of merchandise. The 11 arrests came about after a five-month investigation that started when detectives began probing the theft of a tractor-trailer that contained $104,000 worth of meat. That ultimately led them to the organized theft ring. Authorities say ring members transported stolen tractor-trailers to specific locations where members loaded and offloaded stolen cargo and also stored the stolen tractor-trailers. Sixteen loads of stolen cargo were eventually recovered, including clothing, granite, home goods, landscaping equipment and food products. [Source: GoByTruck News]
Suspect in jewelry store theft arrested
Police in Longview, Texas, have arrested a man wanted in connection with a Zales jewelry store theft in Tyler, Texas. Investigators from several law enforcement agencies believe James Albert Oliver, 49, of Longview, was the man who carried out the theft. Tyler police obtained a warrant for Oliver’s arrest on Monday. Longview police arrested him the same day at a hotel where he was staying. Tyler police began investigating the theft on Dec. 28 when a store employee told them a man wearing a uniform resembling a UPS employee entered the store and asked if there were any outgoing packages of jewelry for him to pick up. Police said an employee gave the man a package containing jewelry valued at $63,000. The suspect left the store with the property, according to police. Oliver was charged with theft of property valued at $30,000 but less than $150,000. Oliver also was wanted on outstanding warrants out of Gregg County and Columbia County, Florida. He was booked into the Gregg County Jail where he is being held on bonds totaling $1 million [Source: Tyler Morning Telegraph]
Shoplifting pair not fast enough to evade arrest
Police in Illinois said a man and woman shoplifted more than $600 worth of clothes from the Von Maur store in the Hickory Point Mall on Tuesday and then tried to run off with them, pursued by store loss prevention. The 48-year-old woman and the man, age 38, were losing the race and threw the clothes into the parking lot as they fled, according to a signed police affidavit from Macon County sheriff’s deputy Justin Lilly. “Deputies later located the subjects … lying down in the backseat of a passenger car, attempting to hide,” Lilly wrote. Deputies reviewed a store surveillance video that showed the woman selecting armfuls of clothes and then making a break for it with the man, the affidavit said. Interviewed later at the Macon County Law Enforcement Center, Lilly said the woman described how the man told her to select the clothes for him. “She advised it was his idea to steal the clothing, and when they approached the exit to the store, he told her to ‘run’ with the merchandise in hand,” Lilly wrote, Police also interviewed the man, but he told them he “did not wish to speak about this incident.” Both were booked on preliminary retail theft charges involving clothing worth more than $300. Preliminary charges are subject to review by the state’s attorney’s office. The woman is free after posting $5,000 bond, but the man remained in the Macon County Jail Wednesday, where he is being held without bond. [Source: Herald & Review]
Shoplifting suspect arrested after Tazer fails…twice
An Oklahoma man accused of shoplifting at Walmart is tackled by a Tulsa County deputy. We’re told 33-year old James Earls had been tazed and tackled twice after he ran onto the parking lot at the store near 71st and Memorial. TCSO Capt. John Bryant said, “The Tazer did not work and the deputy feels it was because the individual had a very poofy baggy coat.” Earls had a BB pistol, BBs and gun oil in his possession when he was arrested around midnight Thursday morning. Earls was booked on possession of controlled drugs, larceny, obstruction and resisting arrest. He also had an outstanding warrant. [Source: KRMG News]
Police seek well-traveled pickpockets
Police in Everett, Washington, are searching for a group of pickpockets suspected of an “extremely large and organized” theft ring that has nabbed wallets from unsuspecting customers across the country. Store surveillance footage of the suspects was released Thursday by Everett police. Along with still images and video, detectives listed nine cases that appear to be connected in Snohomish and King counties. Many of those occurred at Panera Bread or Trader Joe’s, where victims were distracted by someone else who was part of the scheme. The incidents include Dec. 9, thieves stole wallets at a Panera in Lynnwood and another location of the same chain in Woodinville. The same day, a thief took a purse at an Italian restaurant in Bellevue; Jan. 3, a wallet was stolen from a Panera in Factoria, with the thieves spending about $4,000 at a Best Buy; Feb. 2, a thief stole a wallet at a Trader’s Joe’s on Everett Mall Way; Feb. 19, another wallet was stolen at a Panera in Bellevue; March 7, a thief bumped into a woman at a Panera on Everett Mall Way. She later noticed her wallet was gone and found that about $14,000 had been spent at Best Buy and Bed Bath & Beyond. Surveillance footage showed multiple people using her credit cards. The same afternoon, a woman was approached by a stranger who asked her questions. After the conversation, she realized her wallet had been taken. Almost immediately, $3,200 in gift cards were bought at a local Target, and on March 14, a wallet was stolen from a Panera Bread in Bellevue. Suspects used the wallets to buy merchandise from Apple, Nordstrom and Target, or gift cards at retail stores. Local detectives are working with police across the country, from the Pacific Northwest to New York and Florida, to piece together the case. Police are asking for help to identify the people in the images. Tips can be directed to Everett police at 425-257-8450. [Source: HeraldNet]
Orbitz suffers data breach affecting 880,000 credit cards
Online travel agency Orbitz disclosed that bad actors may have gotten their hands on both credit card data and personal information from users who made purchases on the site between 1 January 2016 and 22 June 2016. According to the company, hackers could have accessed approximately 880,000 payment cards from a “legacy Orbitz site”. As well as the data submitted to the legacy site, Orbitz partner platform data submitted between 1 January 2016 and 22 December 2017 may have also been breached. The company first discovered the breach on 1 March. While crucial social security numbers, passport and travel information don’t appear to have been accessed, names, payment card details, email addresses, billing addresses and phone numbers could have been seized by hackers. Orbitz, which is owned by travel giant Expedia, has not yet obtained direct evidence that the information has been stolen, but travel sites are a prime target for hackers as they are treasure troves of information with rich seams of data to mine and potentially exploit.
The company said: “Ensuring the safety and security of the personal data of our customers and our partners’ customers is very important to us. We deeply regret the incident, and we are committed to doing everything we can to maintain the trust of our customers and partners.” The firm is notifying consumers that may have been breached and is also offering them a year of complimentary credit monitoring and identity protection services. Orbitz added that it “took immediate steps to investigate the incident and enhance security and monitoring of the affected platform”. It also said it brought in a panel of people to ensure the platform was rendered inaccessible. “As part of our investigation and remediation work, we brought in a leading third-party forensic investigation firm and other cybersecurity experts, began working with law enforcement, and took swift action to eliminate and prevent unauthorized access to the platform. [Source: Silicon Republic]