As Marylanders increasingly return to Main Street for work, play, and commerce, hometown retail businesses face various challenges, including property theft and associated crime. At the MACo Summer Conference, an expert panel discussed the growing threat of organized retail crime and detailed federal, state, and local efforts to combat the spike.
Unlike amateur theft or spontaneous shoplifting by people with little to no pre-meditation, organized retail crime entails careful planning and high-level coordination. Trade group RILA says organized retail crime cost US retailers nearly $70 billion in 2020 and notes that things have worsened since the COVID-19 pandemic when stores were short on staff.
Maryland Attorney General Anthony Brown led the discussion and moderated an informative Q&A at the “Minding the Store: Combatting Crime at the Retail Level” MACo Summer Conference session.
Panel speakers included:
- Matthew Vendemio, Detective, Montgomery County Police Department
- J. Charles Smith, III, States Attorney, Frederick County, and President, National District Attorney Association
- Gerald D’Angelo, Corporate Investigator, The Home Depot
The session was on August 17 at the Roland Powell Convention Center in Ocean City, Maryland.
More about MACo’s Summer Conference:
