Read Hayes News Today

Shoplifting, often considered a victimless crime impacting only large corporations, is a problem growing in many communities, with a ripple effect that ultimately impacts our wallets.

Retail theft is a growing occurrence across the US. Some experts are pointing to organized South American gangs for targeting stores, along with trucks belonging to retailers, for goods to resell online. Host Carolyn Beeler speaks with Read Hayes, a criminologist at the University of Florida, about these gangs and the efforts to stop them. 

BOSSIER CITY, La. - Retail theft has become a burgeoning epidemic across the United States, with criminals turning stealing into a lucrative business.

During a robbery at a convenience store, an employee hurled a 2-liter bottle of soda at an alleged shoplifter, knocking him out cold. 

RFID gives retailers crime fighting capabilities they have wanted for decades, says the Managing Director of the Loss Prevention Research Council

Investigators said thieves stole items from stores, including Walmart and Publix, in Central and South Florida. The products in total were worth more than $1.2 million.

Retail crime has become a nationwide crisis. To combat it, the National Retail Federation has designated October 26 as "Fight Retail Crime Day."

As major retailers, like Target, plan to close some of their stores due to retail theft, a group of researchers in Central Florida is trying to help corporations outsmart thieves.

Major chains like Target, Walmart, CVS and Home Depot have flagged retail theft as an ongoing problem.

By Parija Kavilanz, CNN