SAN DIEGO COUNTY, Calif. — San Diego Police are asking for the public’s help trying to locate a man suspected of stealing 13 cell phones from nine Trader Joe's stores in Riverside and San Diego counties.
Police say it happened in a three hour span on October 17.
Officers responded to a call from one of the victims who said they found their phone with an unknown man.
By the time they arrived, he was gone.
Still, they were able to recover 13 stolen phones left behind.
"I can see definitely during that time, there's a lot of people in there. It's hard to move around with that many people in there, so it's harder to pay attention to your stuff," said one shopper.
"You know pickpocketers are, they're kind of quick at pickpocketing," said another shopper.
Police provided CBS 8 a list of the locations, which included six stores in San Diego:
San Diego:
- Hillcrest Trader Joe’s, 1090 University Ave (1730 Hours)
- Liberty Station Trader Joe’s, 2401 Truxtun Road (1700 Hours)
- La Jolla Trader Joe’s, 8657 Villa La Jolla Drive (1615 Hours)
- Del Mar Trader Joe’s, 13480 Highlands Place (1520 Hours)
- Mira Mesa Trader Joe’s, 9850 Hibert Street (1435 Hours)
- Carmel Mountain Trader Joe’s, 10955 Carmel Mountain Road (1420 Hours)
Riverside:
- Temecula Trader Joe’s, 40665 Winchester Rd (1140 Hours)
- Murrieta Trader Joe’s, 40388 Murrieta Hot Springs Rd (1045 Hours)
- Corona Trader Joe’s, 2790 Cabot Dr (1000 Hours)
Police say many of the victims had their phone in their pockets, purses and bags slung on their bodies when the theft occurred.
As the holidays approach, it's a reminder to be vigilant and aware of your surroundings, something shoppers CBS8 spoke with say they're always conscious of.
"Yeah, definitely make sure I keep checking my pockets from all my wallet, cell phone, keys," said one shopper.
"I'm very self-aware of where i put down my purse, if I have a card, if I have a little shopping bag or whatever. I always am aware of, like, where I'm putting down my stuff," said another shopper.
A Trader Joe’s spokesperson told CBS 8:
"Nothing is more important to us than the safety of our customers and Crew. Trader Joe's Leaders and Crew are aware that these types of crimes happen in many retail stores. At Trader Joe's – we make sure to have plenty of Crew on the floor of our stores, at all times. Our Crew provide friendly, knowledgeable assistance and serve as a significant deterrent to those who intend to commit a crime. We are always evaluating our approach to this issue in relation to our efforts to create the best customer experience for all who choose to shop in our stores.
We have a multi-layered approach to safety and cameras are one piece of that plan. There are cameras in the stores where the phones were stolen. We encourage any victim of a theft in one of our stores to file a report with local law enforcement. We fully cooperate with all law enforcement investigations."
The spokesperson would not confirm if video captured any of the thefts.
12 of the 13 phones recovered have been returned to their owners.
As for the person of interest, an image was captured from surveillance footage of a man attempting to buy items from the Best Buy in Mira Mesa using one of the stolen phones.
He's described as Hispanic, in his 30's, 5'8 to 5'10, normal build, with short, dark hair. At the time of the thefts, he was wearing a white sweater, black pants, white athletic shoes, and driving a black Mercedes Benz.
Anyone with information is urged to call San Diego Police.