Chile! A HUGE shoe assortment led to a person’s current arrest in Cook dinner County, Chicago. Prosecutors accuse Erick Lujano Bautista of storing about $1 million of Nike and New Steadiness footwear.
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What’s Tea With The Nike & New Steadiness Footwear?
Based on Fox 32 Chicago, police suspect the merchandise have been stolen. Organized Retail Crime (ORC) investigators linked Bautista to the case after studying he was the sublease holder within the warehouse the place the footwear have been positioned. The footwear first got here to mild on Janaury 31. On that day, officers executed a search warrant for the area on the 1500 block of South Western Avenue and arrested Erick the following day.
Moreover, the Cook dinner County Sheriff’s Workplace confirmed that Lujano Bautista just isn’t a certified Nike or New Steadiness vendor. Questions stay concerning the footwear’ origin and the warehouse’s size of exercise.
In the meantime, Erick Lujano Bautista reportedly appeared in courtroom for the primary time on Sunday (February 2), at some point after his arrest. Regardless of the big merchandise, he was free pending different courtroom proceedings. He faces a felony theft cost.
For context, Cook dinner County’s ORC unit launched in 2023. In 2024, the crew reportedly recovered over $3.6 million in stolen merchandise. Nonetheless, the restoration of Nike and New Steadiness items has introduced that complete to $4.5 million within the final 9 months.
By the best way, stolen footwear aren’t a difficulty that solely impacts the Chicago space. Again in October, Washington D.C. police issued warnings to residents about robbers focusing on their ft! Moderately than Nike and New Steadiness, thieves have been aiming for designer manufacturers corresponding to Balenciaga and Louis Vuitton.
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