TALLAHASSEE, Fla.––Attorney General Pam Bondi’s Office of Statewide Prosecution and the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office today announced the arrest of seven individuals for operating a complex shoplifting scheme. The theft ring targeted specific items sold at several major retail stores. Antoun Arbaji, the principal codefendant and his girlfriend, oversaw two crews of large-scale shoplifters led by female counterparts responsible for hundreds of thousands of dollars of stolen goods. Six of the arrestees have lengthy criminal histories rendering them eligible for prosecution as habitual offenders, facing up to life in prison.
According to the investigation, the defendants entered Publix, Target, Walmart and Winn-Dixie retail stores in a coordinated effort to fill empty plastic totes or suitcases with merchandise, including expensive items, and walked out of the store. If approached by store management the defendants would abandon the property and flee. When the theft ring successfully stole items, they would attempt to sell the stolen goods online.
In total, the defendants are responsible for more than 100 incidents, often for several thousand dollars each in Bradford, Clay, Duval, Flagler, Nassau, Putnam and St. Johns counties.
The following defendants are facing charges related to the theft ring:
· Antoun Arbaji;
· Dantavia Berry;
· Deedra Berry;
· Brian Harris;
· Latoya Shurman;
· Natasha Soukseunchay; and
· Jennifer Upton
Attorney General’s Office of Statewide Prosecution will prosecute this case.
