PEMBROKE PINES, Fla. – Police in Pembroke Pines are searching for three people who they say were caught on camera stealing hundreds of dollars’ worth of merchandise from a Sephora store inside the Shops at Pembroke Gardens.
Authorities say the theft happened around 7:30 p.m. on April 17, when a man and two women entered the store and began quickly filling their bags with perfume gift sets.
“They selected 14 boxes of fragrance valued at $720 and then exited the store,” said Sgt. Jason Palant of the Pembroke Pines Police Department.
Surveillance video shows the man in pink walking in first, carrying a large tote bag, followed closely by two women holding their own bags.
Within seconds, the trio made their way to a shelf and began stuffing the fragrance boxes into their bags. Cameras captured clear images of their faces as they walked out.
“They were in the store for about a minute to a minute and a half,” Palant said.
Retail theft continues to rise across the country.
A 2024 report from the National Retail Federation showed shoplifting incidents jumped 93% between 2019 and 2023, with beauty products among the most commonly stolen items.
Florida recently toughened penalties for organized retail theft in an effort to deter such crimes.
“The state laws recently changed to enhanced penalties to people doing organized retail crimes, making it felonies and allowing stricter punishments,” Palant said.
While investigators haven’t confirmed whether the suspects are part of an organized ring, police say they are taking the case seriously.
“We have a group of detectives investigating retail thefts, and when we have good quality video, you become famous for the wrong reasons,” Palant said.
Anyone with information about the suspects is urged to contact the Pembroke Pines Police Department at 954-431-2200 or Broward Crime Stoppers at 954-493-8477.