California Gov. Gavin Newsom’s office announced a promising figure that shows progress in the fight against organized retail crime across the state. 

Law enforcement officials have recovered 525% more stolen goods compared to this time last year, Newsom’s office said.  

A total of 216,754 stolen items have been recovered since the start of 2024, officials say. Statewide, 636 organized retail crime suspects have been arrested as a result of 279 different investigations. 

Four suspects of a crime fence operation were arrested for allegedly stealing over $300,000 worth of tools and merchandise from stores across Southern California. (Los Angeles County Sheriff Department)
Four suspects of a crime fence operation were arrested for allegedly stealing over $300,000 worth of tools and merchandise from stores across Southern California. (Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department)

“Month after month, California is seeing the results of taking down organized retail crime in communities statewide,” Gov. Newsom said. “Our collaboration with local partners allows us to continue taking back stolen items and holding those accountable for this unacceptable crime.”

The value of all the recovered items is nearly $5.7 million. This year’s efforts equal more than half of all the stolen goods recovered by the state’s Organized Retail Crime Task Force in 2023. 

Since the task force’s inception in 2019, 2,600 investigations have been conducted, resulting in the arrest of over 2,700 individuals and the recovery of more than 827,000 stolen items worth $43.8 million.