State leaders fighting organized retail crime increase in Oklahoma

State leaders are working to cut down on organized retail crime.

One lawmaker wants to create a task force to see how the state can deal with the growing problem nationwide.

ORGANIZED RETAIL CRIME IN TULSA

Two separate recent cases of organized retail crime involve Linda Been and Rilysha Dyer.

Been was convicted in federal court of conspiracy, wire fraud, conspiracy to commit wire fraud, conspiracy to commit money laundering, and engaging in monetary transactions in property derived from specified unlawful activity.

Court documents say Been paid “boosters” to steal property from various retail stores including Walmart, Sam’s Club, CVS, and Walgreens. Investigators say she then went and sold and shipped the stolen property to various operations outside Oklahoma, where they could be sold online.

Been was sentenced to more than five years in federal prison.

Dyer was convicted of stealing thousands of dollars in fragrances and merchandise from Ulta Beauty and Academy Sports, then reselling the items or passing them off in gas station parking lots.

Court records show Dyer was convicted of grand larceny, larceny of merchandise from a retailer, and conspiracy to commit a felony and was sentenced to five years in prison.

ORGANIZED RETAIL CRIME TASK FORCE

The Oklahoma Organized Retail Crime Task Force was created through a 2023 Senate Bill.

It created the Oklahoma Organized Retail Crime Task Force until December of 2024.

The law says the goal of the task force was to provide the legislature and the Governor with information on organized retail crime and suggestions for what they could do to stop losses from happening in Oklahoma.

The task force had 15 members.

Before Dec. 15, 2024, the task force had to submit their findings on these topics:

1. A review of laws and regulations on organized retail crime used by other states, the federal government, and foreign countries.
2. The impact of organized retail crime on state and local taxes.
3. The need for interagency coordination of public education and outreach and prevention programs for business owners.
4. Legislative and regulatory recommendations to prevent organized retail crime, address long-term economic impact, and increase transparency and security.

REPORT FINDINGS

The task force report, released in December, has four suggestions for state leaders:

1. Updating the laws to meet today’s challenges with organized retail crime.
2. Using a standardized reporting and intelligence sharing platform between Oklahoma retailers and law enforcement.
3. Maintaining an organized retail crime unit inside the Oklahoma Attorney General’s Office.
4. Educating the public, prosecutors, and the judicial system on the impact of organized retail crime.

The report says organized retail crimes are often also surrounded with other crimes, like drug possession, illegal firearm possession and assault and battery.

Leaders say more than 30 states already have laws against organized retail crime, and many have a method to distinguish organized retail crime from shoplifting or petit larceny.

The task force says the U.S. Chamber of Commerce Retail Crime Data Center reported in 2021, organized retail crime in Oklahoma cost businesses more than $1 billion.

This includes lost product costs, higher insurance costs, and the increased price of goods that results from this crime.

STATE LEGISLATURE

Rep. John George proposed a bill that would create the crime of organized retail crime and authorize a task force at Attorney General’s office to investigate those crimes across multiple jurisdictions throughout the state.

It would also lower the threshold for felony theft from $1,000 to $500.

The bill has already passed the Criminal Judiciary Committee this legislative session.

“Organized theft rings have been a huge problem around this state and around the country,” said George in a press release. “They create an enormous amount of loss for our retail businesses and force prices up for consumers. These rings pose a serious threat to the public safety of our citizens and have run rampant for far too long. Participants in this type of crime should face stiffer penalties.”

LAW ENFORCEMENT RESPONSE

Lt. Tim Means is part of the Tulsa Police Burglary Unit.

"We regularly talk to people outside the state because we do have people who come in from out of state and commit these crimes, and then go to another state,” said Means.

Means says it can be challenging to work with other agencies because everyone operates differently.

"There's a lot of moving parts and a lot of different processes that each department and each state may make their reports, so it's going to take some finagling to try and get that to work together and have some sort of system to where I can log in and say, 'I see this guy or this suspect, oh this guy is over here doing the same thing,”’ said Means.

He says having a standardized reporting system is a great idea.

"If you've got criminals hitting state to state, you can kind of see which way they're going, it's pretty easy to pass that information on and say 'Hey, they're heading your way, maybe get some people to look at these businesses,”’ said Means.

Means says larger businesses are more likely to be targeted because criminals get used to the layout of certain stores.

"They typically get used to one particular type of business, and they know how exactly it's set up and how the process works,” said Means. “I think they probably target specific businesses."

Means says if you see anything suspicious, to pull out your phone and help the police gather any data you can to help with their investigation.

"If you're a witness to something like that and you see people breaking into a cage, best thing you can do is be a good witness,” said Means. “Maybe take a picture of the person leaving. If you're outside and you see them running out of the business with a handful of clothing, that's not something you would typically see."

BUSINESS RESPONSE

Angelene Wright is the owner of Ida Red’s in Tulsa. Their threat is mainly shoplifters, and she says it’s becoming a growing problem.

"I've been fooled a few times over the years by people who really do have a mission or they're conniving in the way they do it,” said Wright.

She says it’s frustrating because their money also goes back into the community to help others.

"Any time there's shoplifting or any kind of theft, it really can affect us, in more ways than one,” said Wright. “We just want to keep our employees safe and support the community."

"Whenever you steal from a business, that's sales tax money that we're potentially losing also,” said Wright. “Every sale goes back into the city."

ATTORNEY GENERAL STATEMENT

Oklahoma Attorney General Gentner Drummond sent News On 6 this statement in regards to its budget request increase to help fight organized retail crime.

“Supporting a new crime in the criminal code through the collaborative efforts of law enforcement will help victims while also supporting justice reform, particularly in separating the random shoplifters from professional thieves,” said Drummond. “The budget for retail crime last year was $1.2 million. Our office is requesting an $800,000 increase, so the requested budget for it is roughly $2 million.”

GOVERNOR STATEMENT

Oklahoma Gov. Kevin Stitt’s office sent News On 6 this statement in regards to the AG’s budget request increase

“Governor Stitt gave state law enforcement the largest raise in decades and made historic investments in law enforcement training. Oklahomans elected a Law & Order governor to fully fund law-enforcement, back the blue, and keep our streets safe— and they expect it all to be done efficiently. Historically, we’ve seen the AG’s office investigate things like Medicare fraud or facilitate multi-county grand juries. Our wonderful state law enforcement are out there every day enforcing the law, while our network of district attorneys prosecute the criminals. The Governor is concerned that the Attorney General‘s office is requesting millions of extra tax dollars to hire lawyers and pursue initiatives that already fall into the purview of our law enforcement agencies. For instance, OBN has statutory authority to crack down on narcotics and human trafficking. OSBI goes after internet crimes against children and cold cases. And OMMA assists all relevant agencies in tackling illegal marijuana grows, etc. The Governor is confident in OSBI, OBN, and OMMA’s ability to tackle organized crime. On its face, the AG’s office requesting millions in additional funding from the Legislature for more lawyers and duplicative initiatives does not seem to be an efficient use of taxpayer dollars.”