San Francisco police arrest suspected serial shoplifter under Prop. 36
Police in San Francisco announced Thursday the arrest of a suspected serial shoplifter, citing a measure recently approved by voters aimed at toughening penalties for retail theft.
According to officers, Marcel Criner was initially arrested on Dec. 4, 2024 following a petty theft incident at a store on the 1300 block of Castro Street. Officers booked Criner into jail on suspicion of felony theft after he was suspected in four other thefts at the same location, saying he stole $1,294.73 of items in total.
Two days later, a judge issued Criner a stay away order from the store and was released on his own recognizance.
Later that month,
Prop. 36 went into effect
. The measure, which was approved by
68.4% of voters in the November election
, enables prosecutors to charge petty theft incidents as either a misdemeanor or felony if a person has two or more prior theft convictions, police said.
According to officers, Criner had what was described as "numerous" prior convictions for theft.
Last month, investigators with the department's Defend Against Retail Theft (DART) Organized Retail Crime (ORC) Task Force began investigating Criner for five thefts at the same store after being issued a stay-away order. Investigators said they were also able to link Criner to three other thefts at the store in November.
Police said the losses from the new incidents totaled nearly $3,000.
Criner was arrested and booked into San Francisco County Jail on March 25. He has been charged with five felony counts of petty theft with a prior conviction, five counts of committing a felony while on release, five counts of violating a court order, three counts of petty theft and two counts of organized retail theft.
"Our officers will continue to use every tool available to them, including new statutes from Prop 36 passed by voters, to hold suspects accountable. I'd like to thank the investigators who worked tirelessly on these cases and continue to curb organized retail theft in our city,"
Chief Bill Scott said in a statement
.
Jail records show Criner remained in custody Thursday on $25,000 bail. His next court appearance is scheduled for April 10.
Anyone with additional information is asked to contact police at 415-575-4444 or to text TIP411, beginning the message with SFPD.
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