Illegal trade in Lego is on the rise in the US.
It must be said that some boxes containing the small plastic building blocks are very expensive.
As a result, a team specializing in organized crime fights specifically against these criminals.
In recent weeks, from California to Pennsylvania, several Lego stores have been robbed in the United States. “They knew exactly what they were looking for and where to go, straight to the most expensive items”notes Katie Leuschner, a grocery store victim of these thefts, in the video above. As a result, the California police have been investigating the matter for seven months and have succeeded in uncovering several channels.
Thus, in one house, 28,000 boxes of Lego were found still wrapped, ready to be sold on the Internet. Two people were arrested. Four other suspects were in possession of €200,000 worth of stolen Lego sets and two other people were arrested for €80,000 worth of goods. “These products may end up on the second-hand market or sold on the street” Consumers should think twice before buying them.explains Lieutenant Sergio Perez, from the police in California.
We have put several systems in place and we are careful to lock everything, the cabinets, the cash registers.
We have put several systems in place and we are careful to lock everything, the cabinets, the cash registers.
Soma Chatterji, Herndon, Virginia store manager
But why is there so much demand? Lego is the number 1 toy in the world, with a box sold every seven seconds, and the United States, together with Europe, is the largest market. However, due to the pandemic and inflation, the price of a box has increased by 5% on average and by 25% on certain games. “Faced with this, retailers and specialty stores are required to review their security systems, such as the Herndon, Virginia store that opened three weeks ago,” details the special correspondent for TF1.
The owners did not think of opening such an attractive business as a jewelry store for criminals. So faced with this latest wave of burglaries, they had to spend more to protect their property. “We’ve installed more cameras. We’ve got more systems in place and we’re careful to lock everything, the cabinets, the cash registers. We even have a safe. All of this makes us feel more secure.”admits Soma Chatterji, the director. Furthermore, many rooms are not freely accessible.
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With the collector market, the price of some rare items can increase to six times the original price. An example with the most valuable box in the entire store containing a ship from the Star Wars license. “We put it in a custom-made box because it has a lot of value. We are selling it for 12,000 euros. I tell myself that the value of Lego increases faster than gold.”smiles Adrian Perez, assistant director.
Shoplifting has been a recurring problem in the US since the pandemic. It was estimated at almost 120 billion euros by 2023.
