SYDNEY — An Australian man is dealing with theft fees after police uncovered a “important” trove of Lego and toys value $250,000 (£120,800; $163,400) allegedly stolen from malls in Adelaide.
About 2,500 objects, together with 1,700 unopened containers of Lego, had been discovered when South Australian police raided a Royal Park house on Saturday.
The haul — which police say was going to be offered on-line — was the biggest seized throughout an operation focusing on retail theft within the state, and so huge that further officers had been known as in to assist take away the loot, which stuffed three truck hundreds.
The 41-year-old man charged over the stash will seem in Port Adelaide Magistrates Court docket on 30 September.
Other than the Lego, different stolen objects included tender toys, water weapons and toy vans with manufacturers equivalent to Pokémon, Barbie, Whats up Kitty and Thomas the Tank Engine.
“The dimensions of the haul is critical and signifies the depth of the alleged offending,” John De Candia from South Australia Police stated.
He stated the operation — which sees outlets staff up with police to catch alleged thieves — targets repeat offenders in addition to those that use violence and threats when stealing.
Because the stolen objects had been believed to be certain for on-line gross sales, police urged customers to not purchase low cost items from the net.
“This sort of theft just isn’t victimless,” De Candia stated. “Those that buy low cost items from on-line websites are unwittingly facilitating this crime and we might urge them to contemplate this.”
Police stated the operation has seen a drop in store thefts in current months in South Australia, with officers making about 2,500 arrests.
Retail crime throughout the globe has surged lately, with a survey exhibiting experiences by retailers of buyer theft within the UK rose by 3.7 million to twenty.4 million, within the 12 months to September 2024, costing retailers an estimated £2bn. — BBC
