DETROIT (WWJ) — Five women are in custody after Michigan State Police and Attorney General investigators caught them stealing from the Lululemon store in Downtown Detroit on Monday.
MSP officials say their Fraud Investigation Section and AG investigators recently received a tip regarding a crime ring that “conducted several retail thefts from Lululemon stores” across Metro Detroit.
On Monday afternoon detective troopers and AG special agents working the case were conducting surveillance at the popular athletic attire store on Woodward Avenue in the heart of Downtown when they saw a group of people matching the description of the suspects walk into the store.
A short time later the suspects were seen leaving the store carrying a large quantity of clothing, which was later determined to be worth about $13,000, according to MSP.
Officials said five female suspects were taken into custody. Their ages were not released.
Authorities say the alleged crime ring is responsible for several other thefts at Metro Detroit Lululemon stores, totaling more than $125,000 in losses for the company.
“This investigation is ongoing. While many may think retail fraud as a ‘lower level’ crime, these large scale retail thefts put both the public and store employees in danger as well increasing the price at the register for consumers,” MSP First Lt. Mike Shaw said, per a post on the MSP Second District X page.
Officials did not disclose which other Lululemon stores were allegedly hit by the suspects or when those robberies took place.
It was not clear if this group of suspects has any connections to another crime ring that targeted Lululemon and Ulta stores last year. Three Detroiters were charged in December with stealing more than $200,000 worth of merchandise in those “push-out” robberies.