14 Arrested, $4,200 In Stolen Goods Recovered In IE Retail Theft Crackdown

RANCHO CUCAMONGA, CA — Fourteen people were arrested and more than $4,200 in stolen merchandise was recovered during a multi-agency retail theft crackdown conducted in Rancho Cucamonga shopping corridors over a two-week period, authorities said.

Investigators with the San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Department said the operation, dubbed Operation Smash & Grab, took place between Dec. 20, 2025, and Jan. 2, 2026, in the city of Rancho Cucamonga.

The targeted effort resulted in two felony arrests and 12 misdemeanor arrests, with $4,276 in stolen property recovered, according to the Sheriff’s Department.

The operation involved investigators from the Sheriff’s Department’s Gangs/Narcotics Division and Rancho Cucamonga Station, as well as the San Bernardino County Probation Department, Homeland Security Investigations, the California Highway Patrol and the San Bernardino Police Department.

Sheriff’s officials said the department began focusing on organized retail theft in November 2023 after seeing a rise in incidents involving coordinated crews. Authorities said such crews often engage in robberies, burglaries, shelf sweeps and vandalism, using intimidation and “mob mentality” tactics that create unsafe shopping environments for residents.

Operation Smash & Grab targets retail theft crews operating in major shopping districts across the High Desert and Inland Empire, including Rancho Cucamonga, Apple Valley, Hesperia, Victorville and Chino Hills. Investigators use both conventional and non-conventional investigative methods to disrupt and dismantle the groups, authorities said.

The San Bernardino County Board of Supervisors has authorized funding to support countywide crime suppression efforts, allowing for increased law enforcement services aimed at quality-of-life issues, the Sheriff’s Department said.

Officials also noted that one arrest during the operation involved charges made possible under Proposition 36, the Homelessness, Drug Addiction and Theft Reduction Act, which California voters approved in November 2024 and which took effect Dec. 18, 2024.

The measure revised portions of Proposition 47 and allows for enhanced sentencing in certain cases, as well as limits on cite-and-release prior to court appearances.