Authorities have filed charges against the alleged ringleader of a retail crime operation they say spanned 21 counties, involving an estimated $8 million in stolen beauty products.
The ring, investigators said, involved a scheme in which the leader paid at least seven people to steal from Ulta and Sephora stores, as well as other retail outlets. The ringleader would then allegedly sell the stolen cosmetic items on her Amazon storefront for a fraction of the retail price.
In addition to San Diego County, the alleged thefts occurred throughout the state in Alameda, Placer, Kern, Contra Costa, Orange, Los Angeles, Santa Clara, Sacramento, San Mateo, Solano, Riverside, San Joaquin, Stanislaus, Napa, Marin, Tulare, San Bernardino, Sonoma, Ventura, and Yolo counties.
The California Highway Patrol, California Attorney General Rob Bonta and federal law enforcement agencies joined in announcing the arrest, but did not name the alleged ringleader or which agency took her into custody.
The investigation was conducted by the California Department of Justice (DOJ), CHP, Department of Homeland Security and U.S. Postal Inspection Service along with Ulta’s Loss Prevention Organized Retail Crime team and Sephora representatives.
“Organized retail crime has significant financial and safety implications for businesses, retailers, and consumers,” Bonta said in a news release. “Today, we are addressing an audacious instance of organized retail theft and making it clear that such criminal activity will not be accepted in California.”
The ringleader is believed to have recruited young women to enter makeup stores and commit bulk thefts of specific high-demand product to supply her with inventory for her online store.
Recognizing the complexity and scale of the operation, in August 2023, federal investigators requested that the CHP’s Organized Retail Crime Task Force join their ongoing investigation, CHP officials said in another news release.
In December, simultaneous search warrants were executed by task force investigators in Southern California and an unspecified number of suspects were taken into custody.
Upon a search of the ringleader’s residence, large amounts of makeup products still in original packaging were found stored, organized and prepped for shipping. Retailers from Ulta and Sephora assisted in conducting inventory of an estimated $400,000 in recovered products during recent searches of residences.
The charges, brought by the California Department of Justice, include organized retail theft, conspiracy, receipt of stolen property, and multiple counts of grand theft.
