Organized Crime Expands To LA Targeting Nordstroms; 8th Smash And Grab in a Week

 

A looting gang have targeted an LA Nordstrom, making off with eight luxury handbags and assaulting a cop - the latest in a string of smash-and-grab raids to plague California. 

Five people, one wearing an orange wig, entered the open store in Canoga Park shortly before 7pm on Wednesday and sprayed a security guard with 'some kind of chemical' in front of terrified shoppers, police said.

The thieves sped off and managed to escape with thousands of dollars worth of handbags despite multiple police cruisers, as well as fire trucks and ambulances, responding to the raid.

It is the eighth smash-and-grab robbery in California in the last week where thieves have made off with tens of thousands of dollars in luxury goods, amid soft misdemeanor theft laws in the Democrat-run state. 

Around 20 robbers smashed their way into a Nordstrom at The Grove retail complex in LA on Monday night, making off with $5,000 worth of merchandise; and a CVS pharmacy in the city was struck just an hour later, where looters stole $8,000 from a cash register. 

Law enforcement say that mercenary thieves are being recruited for up to $1,000 to steal the expensive goods which are then shipped across state lines and sold on the internet. The sophisticated method makes it harder for cops to track the criminals. 

The latest string of robberies in The Golden State started last Friday in San Francisco and are ratcheting up as the holiday shopping season is getting into full swing. 

In Santa Rosa, four young men ran into an Apple Store Wednesday morning and fled with $20,000 in goods, police said.

Police in Palo Alto announced Wednesday that two women had been arrested in connection with a Sunday night attempt to steal items from the RealReal clothing boutique downtown.

Police said 30 to 40 people arrived in some 20 cars and tried to break down the glass front door but it held. A security guard reported the effort and the crowd fled as police arrived.

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