Police arrested four people over $300,000 of stolen Lego kits

Image: California Highway PatrolLos Angeles citizens can rest easy knowing that a criminal theft ring is no longer stalking the city’s retail stores to feed a Lego black market. That’s because the California Highway Patrol (CHP) announced this week...

AbJimroe AbJimroe
Apr 14, 2024 - 21:01
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Police arrested four people over $300,000 of stolen Lego kits

Los Angeles citizens can rest easy knowing that a criminal theft ring is no longer stalking the city’s retail stores to feed a Lego black market. That’s because the California Highway Patrol (CHP) announced this week that it had arrested four people it accused of swiping what police estimated was “approximately $300,000” worth of Lego sets.

The four had allegedly burgled stores like Target, Home Depot, and Lowe’s of their Lego stock and sold them to black-market dealers who would then vend the stolen bricks at “seemingly legitimate businesses, swap meets, or online.” Police say they were booked on “charges related to Organized Retail Theft, Grand Theft, and Conspiracy to commit a crime.”

An image of stolen Star Wars Lego kits.

Dark Vador, too.

Image: California Highway Patrol

The CHP posted images of the bust on Instagram. Stolen sets included the $85 921-piece Millennium Falcon (as opposed to the 7,000-plus piece, $800 behemoth from 2017), the $500 6,167-piece Lord of the Rings Rivendell set, the $400 Lion Knights’ Castle, and a $170 1,458-piece Porsche 911 set.

A picture of stolen Lego sets, including the Lord of the Rings Rivendell set.

Rivendell, the last homely house.

Image: California Highway Patrol

Like any other collectible, Lego sets are prime targets. In 2021, French police announced they were investigating an international Lego crime ring. That same year, authorities in Seattle arrested a shop owner accused of selling stolen Lego sets following a clumsily named “Operation: MandalOrganized Retail Theft” investigation, as NBC News reported.