Laws proposed to fight e-fencing
Organized retail theft has become so widespread that state and federal governments are seeking to pass legislation against e-fencing, where stolen goods are sold on Internet auctions and other Web sites.
Both Sen. Dick Durbin and Virginia Congressman Bobby Scott are proposing laws to target e-fencing.
For example, Scott's plan would require online auction operators to retain information about high-volume sellers and provide that information to a retailer or police officer after the police receive a report.
E-fencing has become a $30 billion business, said Peter Gill, a spokesman for the Illinois Retail Merchants Association in Chicago.
"There are pockets of people who go from store to store and steal items that are cheap and easy to move quickly, like baby formula and even razors," said Gill. "They then sell the items to fencing operations, who relabel the products and offer them online as discount merchandise."
Fencing used to be a neighborhood term that has been elevated in recent years. It's when someone who steals and then tries to unload the merchandise on a fence operator, who turns around and resells the items without acknowledging their origins. E-fencing just takes that stolen merchandise to the Web.
Even the National Retail Federation lauded the actions last week to help protect consumers who buy online.
"E-fencing is quickly becoming thieves' preferred method for disposing of stolen retail merchandise," NRF Vice President for Loss Prevention Joseph LaRocca said in a statement. "By hiding behind the anonymity of the Internet, they can make more money with less risk of getting caught than selling to a stranger on a street corner who might turn out to be a police officer. This bill would lift that cloak and help law enforcement put online criminals where they belong - behind bars."
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