Police in Los Angeles said a horde of shoplifters made off with thousands of dollars in designer goods Saturday after the group ransacked an upscale shopping mall.
Authorities said a mob of 30 to 50 thieves descended on the Nordstrom store at the Westfield Topanga shopping mall at about 4:15 p.m. Saturday.
The thieves snatched clothes, bags and other goods before they ran off. Two security guards who confronted the shoplifters were shot with bear spray, police said.
Police estimate the loss is between $60,000 and $100,000.
Another video of the Topanga Mall smash and grab pic.twitter.com/mzULJBtpMy
— Downtown LA Scanner (@DowntownLAScan) August 13, 2023
The robbers fled the mall in several getaway vehicles. No arrests have been reported.
“What happened today at the Nordstrom in the Topanga Mall is absolutely unacceptable. Those who committed these acts and acts like it in neighboring areas must be held accountable,” Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass said in a statement. “The Los Angeles Police Department will continue to work to not only find those responsible for this incident but to prevent these attacks on retailers from happening in the future.”
The same Nordstrom location was targeted by thieves in 2021. At that time, five thieves carried out a smash-and-grab-style robbery before deploying a spray that required the mall to be evacuated.
• Matt Delaney can be reached at mdelaney@washingtontimes.com.
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