Mass looting events have been reported outside Los Angeles as the phenomenon spreads throughout Southern California, defying efforts by local officials to deter the flash mobs that carry out the daytime heists in retail stores.
The Los Angeles Times reported Wednesday:
Video surveillance and reports released in the last two days by police displayed the ease and speed of flash mob thefts at retail stores in Riverside and Arcadia, the latest crimes in a spate that has struck businesses throughout the region over the last few weeks.
Riverside police released security footage Tuesday from two burglaries committed about a month apart at the Nordstrom Rack at Canyon Springs Marketplace in Riverside.
…
Five people broke into the Macy’s at the Shops at Santa Anita in Arcadia on Tuesday afternoon, according to a police report.
The phenomenon of mass looting has appeared nationwide in the aftermath of the Black Lives Matter riots, which also involved looting. City police departments were cut or ordered to pull back, leaving criminals with more leeway.
The phenomenon began in earnest in November 2021, with mass looting in high-end shops in San Francisco. It has since spread to Los Angeles and elsewhere. Several recent looting events in L.A. prompted Mayor Karen Bass to form a task force, with help from Gov. Gavin Newsom (D). However, the thefts appear to have spread elsewhere.
Joel B. Pollak is Senior Editor-at-Large at Breitbart News and the host of Breitbart News Sunday on Sirius XM Patriot on Sunday evenings from 7 p.m. to 10 p.m. ET (4 p.m. to 7 p.m. PT). He is the author of the new biography, Rhoda: ‘Comrade Kadalie, You Are Out of Order’. He is also the author of the recent e-book, Neither Free nor Fair: The 2020 U.S. Presidential Election. He is a winner of the 2018 Robert Novak Journalism Alumni Fellowship. Follow him on Twitter at @joelpollak.