Gov. Hochul proposes major crackdown on organized retail theft

Yeah, good morning to you, Calla. We're here at the Fulton Mall, and this is the site of where the retail giant Westfield actually wants out of its lease, saying they can't bring in any more retailers here because of what they call ongoing and rampant retail theft. Just one of the victims of what we're seeing across the area. Now Governor Hochul saying she's got the blueprints to tackle this and stop this crime in its tracks. She calls gangs of thieves that have been working over retail sites retail killers for how they can decimate a business. She says her work to drive down gun violence, murders, and shootings, that she's going to use this same blueprint in her new proposal to stop organized retail theft. She wants to use state police and also make penalties for attacking retail workers the same as that of a first responder. On Tuesday, she was flanked by retail workers, some who have been on site during these smash and grab operations. She announced she's asking the legislature to fund a $45 million plan, get the feds involved, to stop fencing stolen goods at online marketplaces. I'm proposing for the first time that we launch a joint operation between state, federal, and local law enforcement and going after these increasingly sophisticated multi-state retail rings. That's what this is all about. An intense focus on a persistent area of crime with regular collaboration and sharing of data all throughout the week. And part of this $45 million would be a tax break going to small business owners to get money back into their pockets after they stall their own security systems so that they can also try to tackle this retail theft. We're live this morning in lower Manhattan. I'm Kirsten Kulbix, 11 News.