Police officers have recovered an eyewatering £22,000 worth of stolen Labubus, as concerns rise over opportunistic thieves looking for ways to snatch the coveted plushies
CCTV shows thieves stealing Labubu dolls from LA store
The Labubu doll frenzy has sparked a terrifying rise in robberies as thieves attempt to cash in on the viral plushie trend.
Police in California have recovered an astonishing $30,000 (£22,000) stash of the sharp-toothed plushies, after they were stolen from a warehouse.
In a statement issued on Monday, the City of Chino Police Department revealed that the popular dolls had been taken over the course of several days, with thieves having made “multiple trips”.
After recovering fourteen boxes of stolen Labubus at a Upland residence, police also found “evidence indicating the items were being prepared for resale and shipment across the country”. One suspect attempted to flee after the search warrant was served but “ultimately surrendered without incident”.
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Applauding the efforts made by detectives in this case, police said: “The recovered property, valued at approximately $30,000, was returned to the rightful owners. Outstanding teamwork in bringing this case to a close!”
Labubu collectables are highly sought after following a viral online frenzy over the trendy toys earlier this year. They often sell out after each release, meaning fans will fork out dizzying sums for rare dolls. And this lucrative market is enticing criminals to steal the figurines.
This is not the only incident in recent weeks where boxes of the famous plushies have been snatched, to the devastation of business owners.
At approximately 1:30 am, in the early hours of Wednesday, August 6, masked bandits broke into Californian toy shop, One Stop Sales and looted a number of Labubus, reportedly ignoring cash and electronic goods as they did so.
CCTV footage shows the crooks smashing the glass door of the La Puento store, which only opened a couple of months ago, before snatching thousands of dollars’ worth of Labubus.
Co-owner Joanna Avendano believes the store could well have been targeted after a restock was announced on social media. Discussing the shocking blow with ABC, Joanna recalled how she’d had a “gut feeling” to check surveillance footage via her phone. When she did, she was horrified.
Joanna remembered: “I was watching everything, from when they got in, what they were taking. I was panicking because I was just … I couldn’t do anything.”
She added: “There was a lot taken, maybe like around $30,000 or more of inventory. We worked so hard to get to this point, and for them to just come in and, like nothing, take it all away, it’s really bad.”
Thankfully, police have since recovered some of the stolen items. A snap shared via Instagram by One Stop Sales shows Industry Sheriff’s Station officers posing next to the retrieved dolls.
The post reads: “Thank you to the Industry Sheriff’s Department for helping us recover some of our items. The case is still under investigation. Right now, no further comment.
“We will be updating if they find more of our items! [Industry Sheriff’s Station] Thank you for your service in helping us out. We appreciate everything! As well as our community that has been helping us as well!”
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