The California Highway Patrol this week arrested four suspects and recovered some $300,000 worth of stolen Lego sets connected to an organized retail theft operation, authorities said.
The California Highway Patrol's Organized Retail Crime Taskforce executed search warrants at four locations on Tuesday as part of their investigation into an illegal fencing operation, in which thieves resell stolen goods. A fence is an individual or group who buys stolen goods, then passes them off as legitimate at other retailers or online marketplaces.
Four people were arrested across Los Angeles and Orange counties: 44-year-old Jeremy Johnson, 39-year-old Marta Hardt, 47-year-old Chung-Pei Yu and 35-year-old Shen Li. All four were charged with organized retail theft, grand theft and conspiracy to commit a crime, the CHP said in a news release.
The suspects allegedly stole goods from retailers throughout Southern California, including Target, Lowe's and Home Depot, and sold them to fences. The most abundant item law enforcement found during the raids were Lego sets, particularly those based on movies and video games, or featuring classic cars.
The victim retailers estimate their losses from the thefts at around $300,000, CHP said. Some Lego sets can retail for nearly $1,000.
A Lego Titanic retails for $679.99, while a Lego Millennium Falcon from the "Star Wars" movies goes for nearly $900.
Buyers of the stolen Lego sets "may or may not be aware that the products they are purchasing were stolen as part of an organized retail crime operation," CHP said
-With reporting from TMX
