SACRAMENTO, Calif. – Governor Gavin Newsom announced that California’s public safety investments are paying off, pointing to sharp increases in arrests, prosecutions, and recovered stolen property across the state.
According to a press release from the Governor’s Office, “Between October 2023 and June 2025, state-funded local law enforcement operations resulted in the arrest of more than 25,675 suspects and the referral of nearly 20,049 cases for prosecution.”
The Governor’s Office also reported that more than $190 million worth of stolen property has been recovered, marking a 28 percent increase.
“Our focus is simple: keeping Californians safe,” Newsom said. “We’re cracking down on organized retail crime, partnering with local law enforcement, protecting small businesses, and making sure the people responsible are held to account.”
The release explained that Newsom proposed the Organized Retail Theft (ORT) grants, distributed by the Board of State and Community Corrections (BSCC), which provided 38 law enforcement agencies with over $242 million for equipment, enhanced enforcement operations, new hires, and retail partnerships.
“The ORT grants are empowering local law enforcement to take bold, coordinated action against organized retail crime,” BSCC Chair Linda Penner said. “The results speak for themselves—safer communities, stronger partnerships, and a more resilient retail economy statewide.”
The report cited major arrests and recoveries statewide. The Sacramento County Sheriff’s Office arrested four Colombian nationals accused of being part of a “highly sophisticated, international theft ring, with ties to cartels.” In Santa Clara County, the sheriff and district attorney’s offices “arrested multiple members of a large, organized retail theft ring responsible for at least 80 thefts and recovered more than $380,000 in stolen property from Bay Area T.J. Maxx stores, and seized illicit narcotics.”
In Ventura County, officials broke up a retail theft ring “responsible for the nation’s largest series of thefts across Home Depot stores.” The Bakersfield Police Department made arrests related to “$15,000 in loss of merchandise” across multiple retail stores. Costa Mesa police “arrested suspects with multiple garbage bags full of stolen clothing, including Lululemon, valued at more than $20,000.” The Modesto Police Department reported a “41 percent decrease in stolen vehicles” and credited ORT funding for making such results possible.
The BSCC also distributed more than $24 million to 13 district attorney’s offices through a vertical prosecution grant program that keeps the same prosecutor on a case from start to finish. The office expects the program to increase convictions in the coming quarters.
Two recent cases highlighted by the Santa Clara County District Attorney’s Office—People v. Silas Jones and People v. Salina Cocruma and Michael Lozano—illustrate how the grants are strengthening retail theft prosecutions.
The release also pointed to Sonoma County’s ORT unit, which was approached by several major retailers requesting jurisdiction over theft cases occurring outside the county, citing its “aggressive” prosecution approach made possible by state funding.
Yolo County’s District Attorney’s Office credited its grant-funded Retail Theft Prosecution FastPass program for “56 convictions,” noting that collaboration with retailers and law enforcement has “enhanced their collective ability to address the retail theft crisis.”
“In total, $267 million in grant funding to 55 communities has enabled cities and counties to hire more police and secure more felony charges against suspects,” the release stated.
The Governor also highlighted the success of the California Highway Patrol’s Organized Retail Crime Task Force, which “made nearly 800 arrests, conducted over 500 investigations, and recovered more than 150,000 stolen goods valued at $8.6 million” in a single year. Since its inception in 2019, the task force has participated in more than 4,050 investigations, leading to nearly 4,600 arrests and the recovery of more than 1.4 million stolen goods valued at roughly $60 million.
The release cited the Major Cities Chiefs Association, noting that “overall violent crime in major California cities is down 12.5 percent in 2024 compared to 2023.” The California Department of Justice reported that “every major crime category, including violent crime and homicides, dropped in 2024.”
The statement contrasted California’s investments with federal policy, saying, “While Republicans in Congress pushed their ‘big beautiful betrayal’ bill, cutting funding to vital public safety programs, California demonstrated what real public safety looks like: serious investments, strong enforcement, and real results.”
“California has invested $1.7 billion since 2019 to fight crime, help local governments hire more police, and improve public safety,” the release said. “In 2023, as part of California’s Public Safety Plan, the Governor announced the largest-ever investment to combat organized retail crime in state history—an annual 310 percent increase in proactive operations targeting organized retail crime.”
The release concluded, “In August 2024, Governor Newsom signed into law the most significant bipartisan legislation to crack down on property crime in modern California history. While California’s crime rate remains at near-historic lows, these laws help the state adapt to evolving criminal tactics, ensuring perpetrators are effectively held accountable.”
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BSCC California crime Gavin Newsom Governor Gavin Newsom Law Enforcement Organized Retail Theft Public Safety
