California Attorney General Rob Bonta has announced a slate of felony charges against 22 people accused of a string of burglaries of cannabis businesses spanning multiple counties.
Each is charged with 32 felonies related to 15 burglaries, including charges of commercial burglary, grand theft, organized retail theft, and conspiracy, according to Bonta.
The joint law enforcement operation was part of the state’s focus on organized retail theft and was called Operation Sticky Fingers, part of a greater crackdown on retail theft since 2019 that coordinates state and local agencies to target both the theft and sale of stolen merchandise, which often occur in different locations.
The thefts occurred in nine counties since early 2023, with about half of the burglaries reported in Santa Cruz County. But most of those charged are residents of Alameda County, Bonta said.
Nearly 1,000 pounds of cannabis was allegedly stolen, worth about $1 million, according to Bonta. He spoke at a press conference on Thursday at the Santa Cruz County Sheriff’s Office, which participated in the operation, along with the Oakland Police Department and California Highway Patrol.
“We’re talking about coordinated schemes, organized efforts that hurt our businesses and pose a threat to our communities, and those organized criminal schemes deserve and require an organized response.”
AG Rob Bonta
The 22 people charged are accused of meeting at predetermined locations during the night and forcing entry to cannabis retail businesses, stealin g edibles, cannabis and other related products.
Stores targeted were in Santa Cruz County, Monterey County, Solano County, Kern County, San Luis Obispo County, Fresno County, Merced County, Sonoma County, and San Diego County.
“We are not talking about shoplifting a couple of packs of THC gummies,” Bonta said at the press conference.
“We’re talking about coordinated schemes, organized efforts that hurt our businesses and pose a threat to our communities, and those organized criminal schemes deserve and require an organized response,” he said.
The suspects were identified through another joint law enforcement operation in Oakland, Operation Ceasefire, which targets gang and gun violence.
Frederick Shavies, a deputy chief with the Oakland Police Department, said the department opened an investigation into cannabis retail thefts in February. After coordinating with the Attorney General’s Special Operations Unit, the suspects were allegedly identified in burglaries between March 2023 and July of this year.
“The Oakland Police Department continues to leverage its local, state, and federal partners to address group and gang-associated violence, and multi-jurisdictional commercial burglaries and robberies,” Shavies said.