Lawmaker aims to curb organized retail theft

A Utah lawmaker is joining merchants in their fight against organized retail theft by proposing legislation that will make some forms of retail theft a felony and order those found guilty to pay restitution for the stolen property.

Rep. Paul Ray, R-Clearfield, said Wednesday that groups are stealing large quantities of items from stores like Wal-Mart and selling them to fund terrorist and gang activity.

The Legislature's Law Enforcement and Criminal Justice Interim Committee unanimously endorsed a bill that would define what constitutes a pattern of unlawful activity, or organized retail theft.

Highly sophisticated groups are being blamed for $30 billion annually in organized theft costs to the retail industry, according to an Associated Press story last August. One group led by Samih Jamal of Mesa, Ariz., allegedly stole and resold millions of dollars of baby formula, the AP reported.

Larger merchants, such as Gap Inc., Sears Holdings Corp. and Wal-Mart, have begun to create crime databases and "crime squads" while focusing less on first-time thieves who steal less than $25 in goods, according to the AP.