NRF Honors Law Enforcement, Loss Prevention Professionals During 2011 LP Conference and EXPO

For Immediate Release
Kathy Grannis (202)783-7971
grannisk@nrf.com

NRF Honors Law Enforcement, Loss Prevention Professionals During 2011 LP Conference and EXPO

Dallas, June 15, 2011 – The National Retail Federation today announced the recipients of the distinguished Law Enforcement Retail Partnership Award, Loss Prevention Case of the Year, Ring of Excellence and Volunteers in Action at its annual Loss Prevention Conference and EXPO in Dallas. These awards are given annually to deserving individuals who exhibit dedication to the profession of loss prevention and the practice of preventing, tracking and apprehending retail criminals.

2011 award recipients are as follows:

Law Enforcement Retail Partnership Award: Oscar Valenzuela and Marek Drozd, Counterterrorism and Intelligence Division, Chicago Police Dept.; David Williams, Assistant State’s Attorney, Cook County States Attorney’s Office

LP Case of the Year: Shane Coover and Raphael Villanes, Senior Investigators, Safeway, Inc.; Mike Seiro, Investigations Team Leader, Target Corporation; Damien Walter

Ring of Excellence: John Hegan, retired Vice President of Security for R.H. Macy & Co.

Special Recognition: Sergeant Gerry D’Angelo, Baltimore County Police Dept.
Award winners, nomination information and specific case highlights are listed below.


2011 NRF Law Enforcement Retail Partnership Award

NRF’s Law Enforcement Retail Partnership Award is presented each year to individuals in the law enforcement industry who have gone above and beyond the call of duty to support the retail industry in its fight against retail fraud, organized retail crime and other major incidents that affect the retail industry.

NRF presented this year’s award to Oscar Valenzuela and Marek Drozd, Counterterrorism and Intelligence Division at the Chicago Police Department, and David Williams, Assistant State’s Attorney at the Cook County States Attorney’s Office, for their work in uncovering a multi-million dollar criminal enterprise responsible for the theft of over-the-counter health and care items. The thefts occurred at several retail companies throughout the Chicago area.

The enterprise operated mostly out of a wholesale company, working with criminals who would steal goods and bring them to the wholesale location. Retail investigation teams and the Chicago Police Department worked together to monitor and track the owner of the wholesale company, who was believed to be involved in the thefts. Using a “sting” trailer equipped with video and GPS technology, the teams orchestrated the sale of stolen merchandise to the wholesale business. After the transaction, the Chicago Police Department executed simultaneous search warrants, including the residences of the owners of the wholesale company. Investigators recovered more than $4.5 million in their search of a safety deposit box at a bank the owners were tied to. The suspects were charged with theft and money laundering, both Class 1 Felony cases.

Several retailers participated in this investigation, including Target, CVS and Walgreens, as well as their vendor partners Proctor & Gamble, Monster Energy Drink and Red Bull.

2011 Loss Prevention Case of the Year

The Loss Prevention Case of the Year Award is the premier recognition program for loss prevention professionals. The award recognizes a loss prevention professional whose investigation has made a positive impact on their company, their community and the industry at large.

Three loss prevention executives are the recipients of NRF’s 2011 Loss Prevention Case of the Year award - Senior Investigators at Safeway, Inc., Shane Coover and Raphael Villanes, as well as Target Corporation Investigations Team Leader Mike Seiro, and Damien Walter.

In 2009, Safeway and Target senior investigators based in the Baltimore area launched an investigation into area pawn shops that were believed to be selling stolen goods and serving as fence locations. Surveillance and monitoring of controlled sales revealed the pawn shops also ran e-businesses, using third-party websites to sell their stolen goods.

A separate investigation taking place around the same area revealed more of these types of buy-and-sell shops, and surveillance revealed a potential criminal enterprise.
As the two investigations progressed, it became apparent that they were actually linked. “Operation Pharmgate” was born, named because of the over-the-counter medications and beauty products that criminals were stealing and selling through these pawn shops. Eventually, Coover, Villanes and Serio, and area law enforcement uncovered a criminal enterprise that spanned several East Coast states and various warehouse locations and pawn shops that were selling stolen palletized products, or cargo shipments meant for retailers. The interstate transactions permitted federal law enforcement agencies to expand their participation in the case.

The U.S. Postal Inspection Service, Federal Bureau of Investigation, Food and Drug Administration and Internal Revenue Service all played a vital role in the investigation in conjunction with the Baltimore County and Baltimore City Police Departments. Additionally, the loss prevention teams at The Home Depot and Wegmans provided technical expertise and logistical support on this case.

The total dollar amount associated with this criminal enterprise was estimated between $30 and $45 million. In March of 2010, more than 100 officers from seven different agencies executed search warrants on over 30 locations. All but one of the original persons indicted has been convicted or pled guilty to the charges.

NRF Ring of Excellence

The Ring of Excellence is a premier recognition program for loss prevention professionals whose achievements and outstanding leadership have significantly shaped the industry. Distinctive accomplishments include contributions of lasting value, notable leadership, development of original ideas and outstanding service to organizations serving the retail industry. Their contributions helped build the foundation upon which many retailers rely today.

This year, NRF recognized John Hegan, retired Vice President of Security for R.H. Macy & Co., for his contributions to the retail loss prevention industry, which spans 45 years and includes work with The US Secret Service, New York Police Department, the International Olympics Committee and Atlanta Police Department. He was also responsible for security operations for the annual Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade.

Special Recognition

In addition to NRF’s LP Awards, NRF gave special recognition to Sergeant Gerry D’Angelo for establishing a strong retail theft task force unit in the Baltimore County Police Department and his exceptional leadership on “Operation Pharmgate”.

Throughout the course of “Operation Pharmgate”, over 150 law enforcement officers from seven agencies were involved. D’Angelo’s persistence in helping the retail industry has kept his unit, department and surrounding area agencies focused on retail crime issues as well as supporting legislative initiatives.

As the world's largest retail trade association and the voice of retail worldwide, the National Retail Federation's global membership includes retailers of all sizes, formats and channels of distribution as well as chain restaurants and industry partners from the U.S. and more than 45 countries abroad. In the U.S., NRF represents the breadth and diversity of an industry with more than 1.6 million American companies that employ nearly 25 million workers and generated 2010 sales of $2.4 trillion. www.nrf.com

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