MISSISSIPPI COMPUTER THEFTArea homes yield stolen goods - The Clarion-Ledger
Area homes yield stolen goods

File Photo:Jackson police Det. Jaye Coleman puts suspected stolen goods into the bed of a truck after they were recovered from a home on Woodlawn Street in Jackson. Items removed from the house included machinery, computers and a large screen television.
Pool tables, chess sets and computers are items a shopper can find at a local mall, not at a house.

But such items have been among $60,000 worth of stolen merchandise police say they have seized from homes in five separate busts in Jackson since October. Police say the items were stolen from stores such as Wal-Mart, The Limited and Bombay Trading Co. Four arrests have been made.

"People who don't want to work figure out ways to get around the system," said Jackson police Sgt. Jeffery Scott.

Returning merchandise to its proper owners depends on how well records were kept, Scott said. He could not say Monday how many of the items have been returned.

Matt Herndon, project manager at Real Estate Solutions, is among those who have contacted police and gotten some items back.


Herndon said burglars had cut phone lines to disable the company's security system and got away with two computers, two personal digital assistants and a 27-inch TV. A co-worker saw recovered merchandise from the business on a local TV station, prompting Herndon to call the station and Jackson police. He got a co-worker's computer monitor back by bringing in a receipt to claim the item, which was among those seized at 2507 Woodlawn St.

"It's better than nothing," he said. "That's all right because I'm sure they'll help us get the rest of it."

Some shoppers say they're aware that some goods offered to them, particularly on the streets, are stolen so they avoid the lure of marked-down merchandise at all costs.




While in her car, Valencia Rankin said she once was approached by a man selling video cameras in south Jackson.

"He pulled up next to me on Bailey Avenue," she said. "He said, 'Ma'am, do you want to buy a camera?' I didn't even ask how much it was."

Rankin said she also has been asked to purchase jewelry but declined the offer.

"You don't know if it's stolen," she said. "Just go to the store and buy it yourself. It's easier and safer."

Emma Pough, a hair stylist at Jerrie's Hair Salon, said she's seen stolen goods sold at local establishments.

"I get approached by people with jewelry in the parking lots of department stores and grocery stores," she said.

Corporate representatives from Wal-Mart say prices for consumers aren't hiked because of theft.

"All decisions regarding prices are making sure we have the best possible price for the consumer," said Wal-Mart headquarters spokeswoman Jolenda Stewart. "But, nothing surprises me. It's unfortunate. We have policies and security measures in place to prevent theft."

Richard Hollinger, criminology professor at the University of Florida and co-author of the National Retail Security Survey, said organized theft can occur anywhere.

"The newest wrinkle in the shoplifting-loss prevention picture is organized gangs of shoplifters going on around the country," he said.

A conviction for receiving stolen property of less than $500 is up to a $1,000 fine or six months in jail, or both. Receiving stolen property worth more than $500 carries a penalty of up to a $10,000 fine or five years in prison, or both.

"There is an enhancer in the shoplifting statute," Assistant District Attorney Bob Taylor said. "If a person has been convicted of two prior misdemeanor shoplifting (charges), the third can be treated as a felony. Beyond that, there's the general habitual offender law."