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https://www.kgw.com/article/news/crime/retail-theft-ring-100k-worth- merchandise-portland-businesses/283-130ec266-7a6c-410f-bd30-03adad33260f

PORTLAND, Ore. � Two suspects believed to part of a long-running organized retail theft ring were arrested Tuesday after police said they stole over $100,000 in merchandise from Portland businesses.

At 3 p.m., police arrested the two suspects, 33-year-old Markesha McGruder
and 28-year-old Elexis Jackson, during a traffic stop in the area of
Northeast Halsey Street and Northeast 112th Avenue. Both are from
Portland.

Officers recovered 25 pieces of suspected stolen merchandise, including
many that still had magnetic security tags. Those items were traced back
to high-end retail stores from businesses in Portland and jurisdictions
along the Interstate 5 corridor, such as Lululemon, according to the
Portland Police Bureau. Said retail theft operation has been going on for nearly a decade.

�These are people that are looking in a very organized, methodical way, to steal and turn that into a criminal profit,� said Multnomah County
District Attorney Nathan Vasquez.

Prosecutors say the Lululemon store on Northwest Couch Street was hit
multiple times between February and May, with McGruder allegedly stealing merchandise on four separate occasions. In total, more than 130 items �
valued at over $15,000 � were taken from the store during that period, according to court documents.

McGruder faces four counts of organized retail crime, 10 counts of first- degree theft, two counts of second-degree theft and one count of
aggravated theft. Jackson faces two counts of organized retail crime, four counts of first-degree theft and one count of aggravated theft.

Surveillance footage provided by the DA�s Office allegedly shows both
McGruder and Jackson stuffing clothing into their coats. Deputy District Attorney Theresa Turner said the frequency of the thefts makes this case
stand out.

�We are talking about someone that is going there over and over and over
and over again,� Turner said.

�A lot of those items still had the magnetic security tags on them,� said Officer David Ramos of the Portland Police Bureau. �One of the tags looked
like it had been melted down in an attempt to remove.�

District Attorney Vasquez said his office is pursuing these cases
aggressively.

�We want to make sure this community isn�t losing businesses because of
this,� Vasquez said. �We are going to take every effort we can to really
curb this activity and go after those individuals who are responsible for this.�

Authorities say multiple warrants are still outstanding for others
believed to be connected to the theft ring.

The arrests were part of a months-long mission by the Multnomah County
District Attorney�s Organized Retail Theft Task Force; the Oregon
Department of Justice; and retail loss prevention professionals with the Organized Retail Theft Association of Oregon (ORCAOR).

Multnomah County authorities are cracking down on the long problem of
retail theft, resulting in multiple missions and arrests, though some
Portland small business owners told KGW in June that they would appreciate
more attention spent on small business thefts and burglaries rather than
chain stores.


--
November 5, 2024 - Congratulations President Donald Trump. We look
forward to America being great again.

We live in a time where intelligent people are being silenced so that
stupid people won't be offended.

Every day is an IQ test. Some pass, some, not so much.

Thank you for cleaning up the disasters of the 2008-2017, 2020-2024 Obama
/ Biden / Harris fiascos, President Trump.

Under Barack Obama's leadership, the United States of America became the
The World According To Garp. Obama sold out heterosexuals for Hollywood
queer liberal democrat donors.

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