Asset protection, family protection — have you noticed there is quite a bit of crossover?
Often in groups of up to 15 people, the bandits burst into a store, make a beeline to the lucrative goodies and quickly pillage the shelves. (High-end jeans and cosmetics are favorite items, experts say.) Sometimes even before the store employees or security realizes what is happening, the mob has dispersed, goods in tow. “The longest I saw it take them was two minutes,” says San Francisco police officer Carlos Manfredi, who has been working to arrest the robbers and their copycats. Depending on the target, each shoplifter can pocket more than a dozen items each. Manfredi estimates the Rainbow Girls have stolen more than a million dollars in merchandise over the years.
