S2827

TRENTON – A measure sponsored by Senators Paul A. Sarlo and John A. Girgenti that would create the crime of “leader of an organized retail theft enterprise,” and impose prison time on persons found guilty of leading or participating in organized theft rings received unanimous approval today from the Assembly.

“Today’s unanimous approval of this bill is taking us one step closer to ridding New Jersey of these organized theft rings,” said Senator Sarlo, D-Bergen, Essex and Passaic. “When these groups collaborate and steal thousands of dollars worth of merchandise from stores, consumers are left to pick up the slack by paying higher prices for the items they need. This bill will target everyone involved in these theft rings and send a clear message that we will not allow these rings to rob our local businesses or our honest taxpayers of their hard-earned dollars.”

TRENTON – A measure sponsored by Senators Paul A. Sarlo and John A. Girgenti that would create the crime of “leader of an organized retail theft enterprise,” and impose prison time on persons found guilty of leading or participating in organized theft rings received unanimous approval today from the Assembly Judiciary Committee.

“This legislation would help apprehend members of these shoplifting rings on every level, from the low men on the totem pole to the ringleaders,” said Senator Sarlo, D-Bergen, Essex and Passaic. “Groups like these force store owners to raise prices, leaving the rest of us to have to pay more and make up for the lost profits. Tougher penalties are needed to send a clear message to these shoplifting organizations that the State is standing behind store owners and honest consumers, and we will not allow these theft rings to continue – if they are caught, they will be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law.”

TRENTON – A measure sponsored by Senators Paul A. Sarlo and John A. Girgenti that would create the crime of “leader of an organized retail theft enterprise” and impose prison time on persons found leading or participating in organized theft rings received unanimous approval today from the full Senate.

“This bill is designed to go after everyone involved in shoplifting rings, including ring leaders, not just the low men on the totem pole,” said Senator Sarlo, D-Bergen, Essex and Passaic. “In the past, it was always the lower level workers being arrested because store employees were able to catch them with the stolen merchandise. This bill would target entire shoplifting organizations, and penalize everyone involved.”

TRENTON – A measure sponsored by Senators Paul A. Sarlo and John A. Girgenti that would expand current shoplifting laws by establishing penalties for “organized retail theft enterprises,” received unanimous approval today from the Senate Law, Public Safety and Veterans Affairs Committee.

“These theft rings are responsible for taking $30 billion worth of merchandise nationwide,” said Senator Sarlo, D-Bergen, Essex and Passaic. “As it stands now, if a person is caught shoplifting, he or she is the only one that is able to be prosecuted. This measure would also allow law enforcement to prosecute the ringleaders, and enable police to bring down entire operations, not just one or two people.”

TRENTON – Senators Paul A. Sarlo and John A. Girgenti have introduced a measure to expand the State’s shoplifting laws by establishing criminal penalties for “organized retail theft enterprises.”

“FBI statistics show that organized theft rings have resulted in roughly $30 billion in losses for businesses nationwide,” said Senator Sarlo, D-Bergen, Essex and Passaic, who serves as Vice-Chair of the Senate Law, Public Safety and Veterans Affairs Committee. “Any way you look at it $30 billion is a large sum of money, but it is especially large when taking into consideration the types of items these criminals steal. You have to take an awful lot of shaving cream and baby lotion to make it add up to $30 billion. This bill would increase the penalties for shoplifting and send a clear message to these thieves that we will not tolerate their attempts to defraud New Jersey’s businesses.”