Placer County DA highlights enforcement, collaboration against retail theft
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- Placer County launched an countywide effort that targets organized retail theft rings.
- A crime data analyst is tracking and mapping repeat retail theft offenders.
- California Proposition 36 consolidated multi-county retail theft crimes.
A group of masked burglars in March rammed the rear-end of a stolen Lexus sedan to break into the Action Camera store in Rocklin, stealing more than $100,000 worth of cameras, lenses, camera bags and other equipment.
Ellie Doyen, community and media manager for Action Camera, said their specialty store had been hit by organized crime. She said other camera stores in Northern California reported similar burglaries, and they wondered whether those responsible would ever get caught.
At a news conference Wednesday morning to tout the successes of the Placer County Retail Theft Initiative, Doyen announced an arrest had been made in connection with the burglary at her Rocklin camera store as the investigation continues to find everyone responsible.
“It just reaffirmed our belief that this is truly one of the best places in California to be a small business,” Doyen said during the news conference at the Westfield Galleria in Roseville. “They take these issues seriously, and we’ll never have to face something like this alone.”
Placer County District Attorney Morgan Gire hosted Wednesday’s news conference to provide an update on the retail theft initiative, which was funded by a $2 million grant and approved by the Placer County Board of Supervisors in 2023.
The grant, administered by the California Board of State and Community Corrections, funded an additional prosecutor, investigator and crime analyst to focus on organized retail theft. The DA’s retail theft vertical prosecution model assigns the same personnel to cases through adjudication and improves coordination with other agencies.
Retail theft hub
Gire said the crime analyst has collected data, including mapping, to track repeat retail theft offenders and worked with about 30 other law enforcement agencies throughout California to stop crime before it comes to the county. His office has worked with other agencies on 12 proactive enforcement operations since last year, leading to the recovery of about $640,000 in stolen merchandise.
“We have an interstate running through our county, which means we’re a hub, a destination for organized criminal networks,” Gire said at the news conference. “You think that Placer County might be a good place to set up shop, and we have sent a loud and clear message that it’s not.”
According to Gire, 95% of retail theft defendants in the county were from other jurisdictions and used Placer as part of a broader crime corridor.
The DA said 71% of retail theft defendants had prior convictions for dangerous crimes, including domestic violence, gun offenses, child abuse, assault on a police officer, sexual battery and assault with a deadly weapon. Gire also said 90% of defendants were repeat retail theft offenders.
With crime analysis, California’s Proposition 36 and collaboration with other law enforcement agencies, Gire said they are identifying and disrupting organized retail theft rings faster and prosecuting repeat offenders.
Prop. 36, approved by voters in November 2024, allows prosecutors to consolidate California theft-related cases when the defendant is accused of committing these crimes in different counties. The DA’s Office says this change in state law improves coordination and results in tougher sentences, especially for repeat offenders and members of organized theft rings who operate across county lines.
Prosecutors said one of those cases involved a thief who stole nearly $30,000 worth of merchandise from Lululemon stores in Placer, Napa, Orange and Los Angeles counties, filling bags with Lululemon pants and walking out without paying. Because of Prop. 36, Gire’s office prosecuted the defendant for all the thefts throughout California and secured a 10-year prison sentence.
Retail sales vital to economy
Every local Chamber of Commerce in the county, along with more than 11,000 businesses, have partnered with the retail theft initiative. Gire said this has opened lines of communication between these businesses and law enforcement officials.
Placer County Supervisor Bonnie Gore, who represents District 1, said the retail economy serves a vital role in the lives of county residents. She said retail businesses generate more than $13 billion in taxable sales annually in the county, tax money that supports parks, libraries and other essential services while stores faces strong competition from online shopping.
“Maintaining safe retail areas is critical to keeping customers walking through the doors of our local stores,” Gore said at the news conference. “Placer County is a place where collaboration occurs to benefit our residents. And when we face challenges, we work together to address them.”
Sgt. Michael Hagerman, a member of the Roseville Police Department investigations division, said the DA’s retail theft initiative has brought the agencies together in a unified mission to protect residents, businesses and the region’s economy.
“We’ve expanded our intelligence, technology and forensic capabilities to track offenders, analyze patterns, uncover complex fencing operations and pursue entire criminal networks; not just individual thieves,” Hagerman said Wednesday. “Real-time communication, shared intelligence and coordinated enforcement allow us to stay ahead of organize theft crews.”
This story was originally published November 19, 2025 at 2:02 PM.
