HUDSON FL June 16 2013
A big electronic sign flashed at the entrance to a Florida Wal-Mart for three months warning everyone not to shoplift because sheriff deputies were operating an undercover sting inside the store.
The undercover operation conducted at a Hudson Walmart with the help of store management and store loss prevention has put a big problem in the spotlight:
Shoplifting
Altogether, 50 arrests were made between early March and the end of the May despite the presence of the big electronic sign in front of the store.
A video released to the media shows deputies tackling one man to the ground after he allegedly tried to leave the store with stolen goods.
Another clip shows a woman casually walk out of the store with a trampoline in her cart. Deputies say she didn't pay for it and arrested her in the parking lot.
"I think this is the most obvious we've ever been," Sheriff Chris Nocco said. "We're telling people we're here and we're going to arrest you.
Nocco said the sting primarily targeted organized thieves who take merchandise to sell to pawn shops. He said that for many of those suspects, shoplifting is their primary source of income. They either sell the merchandise or return it for gift cards.
"We're looking at every opportunity we can to give people the opportunity not to steal. But if they cross that line and they steal, we're going to take them to jail."
Authorities said thieves attempted to steal $4,700 worth of merchandise during the sting.
In all of 2012, there were 221 arrests for shoplifting at the Hudson Walmart store.