On March 17, 2023, Plano police arrested eleven people in connection with an alleged criminal ring that targeted major retail stores in the area. The operation resulted in the recovery of more than $15,000 in stolen merchandise, the city’s police announced on Monday.
According to WFAA, the suspects stole goods from Burlington Coat Factory on Preston Road, Home Depot on West Park Boulevard and Walmart Supercenter on Dallas Parkway.
Eight out of the eleven people arrested were involved in two different thefts that occurred at Burlington Coat Factory. In both cases, police discovered other stolen goods in the suspects’ vehicle.
In one theft, four suspects stole $491.80 from the store and were caught with even more stolen merchandise worth almost $3,500 in their vehicle.
The second group of four suspects was uncovered when police performed a traffic stop and found $2,685.98 worth of stolen items from Burlington Coat Factory in the vehicle. Upon closer inspection, police also found $8,200 in stolen goods from other retailers.
In addition to theft charges, the eight suspects were charged with engaging in organized crime.
As for the other three people who were arrested in the Plano police operation, two were charged for the alleged theft of $452.60 in merchandise at a Walmart Supercenter and a third person was arrested for allegedly stealing $164.53 worth of items from Home Depot.
According to the police (via WFAA), the two people involved in the Walmart incident were also charged with evading on foot.
The whole operation was led by Plano police in partnership with general and forgery detectives and the affected retail stores themselves.
