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Maria Lacerna-Fernandez, 35, of Paterson, participated in the shopliftings at the Rock Road pharmacy on May 19 and 24, Police Chief Dean Ackermann said on Tuesday, June 20.
Detective Sgt. James Calaski initially arrested Carla E. Granda-Jara, a 37-year-old resident of the Silk City, with help from his colleagues in Fair Lawn earlier this month, the chief said.
The sergeant grabbed Ricardo E. Campos-Bardales, 42, on 18th Street in Paterson the following night and found him carrying cocaine, Ackermann said.
Calaski charged both him and Granda-Jara with violating a state law that imposes stricter penalties for those who shoplift as part of an “organized retail theft enterprise,” Ackermann noted.
The law aims to address the growing trend of shoplifting mostly cosmetics that are then sold on the black market, at flea markets and online, the chief said.
"Organized shoplifting is a serious problem at retail stores across the nation, resulting in higher prices for consumers," Ackermann said. "There is a concerted effort by law enforcement to track [them]."
Campos-Bardales was also charged with illegal drug possession and sent to the Bergen County Jail. A judge in Hackensack ordered him released the same day.
Granda-Jara, like Lacerna-Fernandez, was released pending court action, Ackermann said.
Lacerna-Fernandez is charged with two counts of shoplifting, the chief said.
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