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The Montreal police have seized closed to $500,000 worth of stolen clothes and accessories following an extensive investigation into shoplifting.
The police say the investigation dismantled a “structured network” of shoplifters, resulting in three arrests.
The arrested suspects are two women and a man, ages 36, 39 and 49 respectively. They were allegedly responsible for selling the items that were stolen from various businesses in the Greater Montreal area.
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The merchandise consisted mainly of sought-after brand-name items, police said.
“The thieves associated with the suspects allegedly used various specialized tools to deactivate the anti-theft devices protecting the targeted items,” the police department said in a news release Tuesday. “This enabled them to sneak out of the stores without triggering any alarms.”
Police say the suspects then resold the stolen items from a café and a grocery store in the Rosemont-La Petite-Patrie borough.
“Their clientele consisted exclusively of acquaintances,” police noted.
After gathering evidence, police moved to dismantle the network on June 13.
In addition to the two businesses in Rosemont-La Petite-Patrie, a residence in Montreal North and another in the Côte-des-Neiges neighbourhood were also raided.
Besides the clothes and accessories, police also seized a large number of prepaid gift cards and $15,000 in cash.
The three people arrested have been released pending the outcome of the investigation.
Police are asking anyone with information about the network to contact 911 or their local police station.
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