2 Arrested In Connection To Organized Retail Crime Ring In Manteca

MANTECA (CBS13) – Police in Manteca say their new effort to root out so-called organized retail theft crime rings has resulted in an increase in arrests and prosecutions.

The department says these crime rings have been inflicting big financial losses to local businesses.

An investigator has since been assigned as a pilot program against organized retail theft crimes. As a result, police say arrests and prosecutions of these suspects has increased.

Police say a good example of the effort came on Wednesday when an officer on routine patrol pulled over a car for a traffic violation. The officer noticed some items in the car that led him to suspect the pair inside were involved in the crime ring.

As it turns out, police investigators linked the pair to several organized retail crimes in Manteca.

The pair has been identified as 32-year-old Jose Galindo and 19-year-old Josephina Perez, both Stockton residents. Galinda is being held without bail while Perez is being held on $1,000,000 bail.

The large bail amount and felony charges often come as a surprise to the suspects, police say.

Police hope these kinds of consequences get the attention of anyone else considering taking part in organized retail crime.