Alright, which one of you is this?

[kiltyoneal]

😁  https://www.azfamily.com/2023/09/22/man-accused-stealing-7000-high-value-lego-sets-police-say/

 

LAS VEGAS (KVVU/Gray News) - A Las Vegas man is accused of stealing more than $7,000 in high-value Lego sets from multiple Target stores, according to Las Vegas Metropolitan Police.

Alan Horvatich was arrested Tuesday and faces charges of participating in an organized retail theft ring and petit larceny. According to police and court records, Horvatich has been previously convicted of multiple robbery, burglary, larceny and drug charges.

Police said Horvatich stole from two Target stores on 13 different occasions.

Horvatich stole Lego sets that ranged in value from $200 to $430, an arrest report said. Horvatich reportedly stole 32 sets in all, valued at $7,090.67.

Police said on multiple occasions, Horvatich would enter the store with a woman, and they would head straight for the toy aisle. The pair would then grab various Lego sets and run straight to the fire exit of the store with the merchandise, an arrest report said.

Bail was set for $25,000 against Horvatich, court records show. A judge has ordered Horvatich to stay away from the two Target stores from which he allegedly stole. His next court appearance is set for Monday.

Edited September 22 by kiltyoneal
Imbed article text

[Pseudoty]

They are a cute couple  

[gmpirate]

He'd do better in California.

[mlc3423]

38 minutes ago, gmpirate said:

He'd do better in California.

So would she!

[keymomachine]

This sorta fits here. A van crashed into the Bricks & Minifigs in my hometown of Grand Rapids, MI over the weekend. Nothing nefarious, it's just at a T-intersection and I guess a guy hit the accelerator when he meant to hit the brakes or something. Too bad for the owners, but at least they have this good surveilance video:

https://fb.watch/niTU2ULwA5/

[Captain_Obvious]

On 9/22/2023 at 5:42 PM, Pseudoty said:

They are a cute couple  

New WSJ article on theft and eBay resell crackdown: https://www.wsj.com/business/retail/home-depot-tracked-a-crime-ring-and-found-an-unusual-suspect-ed31f6e8?mod=hp_lead_pos7

eBay is occasionally my go-to for new sets on the cheap that may take a quarter or two before they go on the 20% off perm-a-sale. Just picked up the Space Rollercoaster for $70. Hasn't been feeling right lately, especially when the sellers have less than 20 feedback. I'm going to hit the pause button on that for now given all the theft out there. In the past, I thought maybe they got it as a gift or needed to free up some cash, but I'm starting to think otherwise...

[spener90]

2 hours ago, Captain_Obvious said:

New WSJ article on theft and eBay resell crackdown: https://www.wsj.com/business/retail/home-depot-tracked-a-crime-ring-and-found-an-unusual-suspect-ed31f6e8?mod=hp_lead_pos7

eBay is occasionally my go-to for new sets on the cheap that may take a quarter or two before they go on the 20% off perm-a-sale. Just picked up the Space Rollercoaster for $70. Hasn't been feeling right lately, especially when the sellers have less than 20 feedback. I'm going to hit the pause button on that for now given all the theft out there. In the past, I thought maybe they got it as a gift or needed to free up some cash, but I'm starting to think otherwise...

I currently have a ton of sets for sale on Facebook Marketplace. I wonder if I look like a thief? It’s obvious I’m not, my prices are appropriate, and my response to low balls are I’ll just build it at that price.

There are obvious problems involved with thievery. But the one I feel is most often ignored is the price is actually passed on to the consumer one way or another.

[Captain_Obvious]

33 minutes ago, spener90 said:

I currently have a ton of sets for sale on Facebook Marketplace. I wonder if I look like a thief? It’s obvious I’m not, my prices are appropriate, and my response to low balls are I’ll just build it at that price.

There are obvious problems involved with thievery. But the one I feel is most often ignored is the price is actually passed on to the consumer one way or another.

Yes, it's passed on, but not in the way we typically think (price hikes). The forces of supply and demand are strong -- coupled with competition from other Toy companies. Walmart can't just jack up the price and expect the demand to be there. The same thing goes for LEGO, they do have competition, and parents will make tradeoffs. 

Here's how I see it affecting the consumer:

1. Inventory is off: most retailers are on an automated replenishment system, so if it thinks it has it in stock (it actually got stolen), it won't trigger the system to replenish -- causing empty shelves and pissed of BP clearance hunters

2. The retailer will reduce the breadth and depth of the assortment to avoid loss (or stop carrying it all together)

3. The retailer will put it behind glass -- causing friction to the consumer

4. The retailer will close down high-risk stores

5. LEGO will offer the retailer rebates for shrink hurting their gross margin: resulting in less profit for LEGO forcing them to cut costs across the board such as R&D, quality standards, and the number of sets created.

When we did our annual cycle counts back in the day, we'd write off 1% for shrink as the cost of doing business. Can't help but think that the average is up to 3% if not higher in some states such as Cali.

[hamay]

On 9/22/2023 at 2:31 PM, kiltyoneal said:

😁  https://www.azfamily.com/2023/09/22/man-accused-stealing-7000-high-value-lego-sets-police-say/

 

LAS VEGAS (KVVU/Gray News) - A Las Vegas man is accused of stealing more than $7,000 in high-value Lego sets from multiple Target stores, according to Las Vegas Metropolitan Police.

Alan Horvatich was arrested Tuesday and faces charges of participating in an organized retail theft ring and petit larceny. According to police and court records, Horvatich has been previously convicted of multiple robbery, burglary, larceny and drug charges.

Police said Horvatich stole from two Target stores on 13 different occasions.

Horvatich stole Lego sets that ranged in value from $200 to $430, an arrest report said. Horvatich reportedly stole 32 sets in all, valued at $7,090.67.

Police said on multiple occasions, Horvatich would enter the store with a woman, and they would head straight for the toy aisle. The pair would then grab various Lego sets and run straight to the fire exit of the store with the merchandise, an arrest report said.

Bail was set for $25,000 against Horvatich, court records show. A judge has ordered Horvatich to stay away from the two Target stores from which he allegedly stole. His next court appearance is set for Monday.

Details of the thefts reveal that Horvatich targeted two Target stores on 13 different occasions. He reportedly entered the stores with a woman and headed straight for the toy aisle. They would then grab various Lego sets and quickly make their way to the fire exit of the store with the stolen merchandise.

[Huskers1236]

He had to pay for those fake cans somehow.

[vincevaughn]

13 hours ago, hamay said:

Details of the thefts reveal that Horvatich targeted two Target stores on 13 different occasions. He reportedly entered the stores with a woman and headed straight for the toy aisle. They would then grab various Lego sets and quickly make their way to the fire exit of the store with the stolen merchandise.

I feel like 2 people in 13 trips should have been able to steal waaay more than 7K of sets with how much LEGO costs at retail 😝