An Ontario man arrested for shoplifting over the weekend is being accused of running a retail theft ring that supplied businesses with specialty cheese products monthly.
South Simcoe police said that on May 9, officers were called to a store in Bradford, Ont., for reports of a theft.
After locating the suspect vehicle, which they pulled over, officers discovered more than $1,500 worth of stolen cheese and chocolate products, “along with additional evidence connected to organized retail theft activity,” police said in a Facebook post Tuesday. Police seized a 2026 Honda CRV.
The driver, who was the sole occupant of the vehicle, was arrested.
“Through further investigation, police linked the accused to numerous retail theft incidents stretching from Hamilton to Cambridge, throughout the Greater Toronto Area, and north to Barrie,” police said.
“The accused allegedly operated a business that sold stolen products as legitimate merchandise, supplying several GTA businesses with large quantities of specialty cheese products on a monthly basis.”
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A 60-year-old man from Woodbridge, Ont., is facing 25 criminal charges, including theft under $5,000, possession of property obtained by crime, trafficking property obtained by crime and possession of property obtained by crime for the purpose of trafficking.
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“Retail theft has a direct impact on businesses, employees, and the broader community. We continue to work closely with loss prevention specialists to stay ahead of emerging retail theft trends, and through these partnerships, our officers were able to quickly identify what appeared to be a larger organized operation extending beyond our communities,” Staff Sgt. Dave Phillips said in the post.
“Organized retail theft costs retailers millions of dollars each year in lost revenue. Investigations like this send a clear message that organized retail crime will not be tolerated in our communities, and those responsible will be held accountable.”
Police added that the investigation remains ongoing and more charges are expected.
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