San Jose police have arrested a Nevada man in connection with stealing purses and other merchandise from the Gucci store at Westfield Valley Fair mall last week, but they're still searching for four other suspects involved in the robbery.
Shawn Pruitt, 27, of Henderson, Nevada, was one of five masked males who ran into the Gucci store on Oct. 5 and stole roughly $50,000 worth of merchandise in just 20 seconds, police said.
A responding reserve officer managed to detain Pruitt, who police said resisted and punched the officer. Mall security helped the officer take Pruitt into custody after a brief struggle. Two stolen purses were recovered at the scene.
The four other suspects managed to get away, police said. Detectives are asking for the public's help in identifying them.
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Authorities discovered that Pruitt was a wanted fugitive out of Nevada with an active warrant for his arrest, police said.
He was taken to the Santa Clara County Main Jail and booked for robbery, organized retail theft, possession of burglary tools, assault on an officer and his warrant, police said.
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Meanwhile, the California Retailers' Association said retail theft has been a growing issue for years, but also said the state is making progress on stopping it.
"Last week, the governor released over $300 million in local law enforcement grants that will go to help local law enforcement combat retail theft in addition to district attorneys for prosecution so that we can really holds these criminals accountable for their behavior," said Rachel Michelin, president and CEO for the California Retailers' Association.
The association has also been pushing for new laws that would allow multiple smaller thefts to be stacked up as a felony charge, allowing for a more serious punishment. The association may now ask voters to weigh in.
Back in San Jose, police said every store has different policies on what security guards can do in these situations, but have a stern warning to any would-be thieves.
"If they assume that they can come to the City of San Jose and commit these types of organized retail thefts, they can test that assumption from the comfort of their jail cells," said Steven Aponte, public information officer for the San Jose Police Department.
Anyone with information about the Westfield Valley Fair Mall case is asked to contact Detective Mendoza (#4395) of the San Jose police robbery unit by emailing 4395@sanjoseca.gov or calling 408-277-4166.
