Tide Detergent Theft Elsewhere, But No Spike in Laguna Niguel

Fox News reported on Monday "that authorities from New York to Oregon are combating a new wave of Tide theft at popular retail stores like CVS and . The story quickly spread virally across the Internet and was the subject of a segment Tuesday on ABC's "Good Morning America." 

One man in Minnesota reportedly walked off with more than $25,000 worth of Tide over a series of months.

However, here in Laguna Niguel, the local Walmart has not had any reports of theft, according to a spokesperson for the retail chain, Diane Gee.

“Luckily, it looks like it was an isolated incident that happened in St. Paul,” she said.

And what about at local grocery stores?

Lila Rodriguez, a Fullerton-based spokesperson for stores, said: "Loss prevention teams are aware of these thefts. Tide is one of our top products stolen from our stores across the nation." 

However, the only reported case of any stolen Tide in Orange County was on Feb. 7 at a store in Mission Viejo, where a man lifted nine bottles of Tide from store shelves. The value was more than $180, said O.C. Sheriff's Department spokesman Jim Amormino. The man drove off with the detergent and crashed into a paramedics van, and was arrested because, "he was under the influence of meth," Amormino said.

"That is the only case that I have heard of," Amormino said. "I think a lot of law enforcement out there are baffled by this situation."

Joseph LaRocca, a senior loss prevention advisor and spokesperson for the Washington-based National Retail Federation, said the recent reports of Tide theft, unfortunately are nothing new. In fact, it actually has a name in the retail industry called, “Organized Retail Crime.”

"We see two types of those who steal, the amateur shoplifter like little Jimmy who might steal a pack of bubblegum, to the extreme professional who commits organized retail crime by stealing large quantities for either bartering or for profit."

These professionals are called "boosters," and they are typically people who are “drug users, those desperate for cash, or are here illegally, or "hard up for cash," said LaRocca, who is based in Los Angeles. 

Once the items are stolen, the booster takes them to a "fence operator," who in turns gives them very little for the item, and then sells them on a street corner, at a pawn shop, or the like, LaRocca added.

LaRocca said these items are typically stolen because they are highly desirable, easily sold in the consumer market to other smaller markets, mom and pop stores, at street fairs, pawn shops and flea markets.

In June 2011, La Roca said 95 percent of retailers nationwide reported organized retail crimes, up from 89 percent in 2010.