Chicago Man Arrested After $1M Worth of Stolen Sneakers Found In Warehouse
Chicago Man Arrested After $1M Worth Of Stolen Jordans Found In Warehouse
Source: Cook Country Sheriff / Cook Country Sheriff
Stacks of sneakers are always a sneakerhead’s dream, but not this way.
Last week, Chicago police arrested Erick Lujano Bautista after they discovered a local warehouse stocked with stolen New Balance and Nike’s reportedly worth around $1 million, according to CBS News.
According to Sheriff Thomas J. Dart, Organized Retail Crime investigators discovered stolen sneakers were being stored at a warehouse in the 1500 block of South Western Avenue in early January. They later learned that Lujano Bautista, 26, was subleasing the space. Then, on Jan. 31, authorities finally executed their search warrant to discover the stash.
Both Nike and New Balance worked with the sheriff’s office to tally up the stolen merchandise and determine what to do with it.
Dart’s organized crime unit came together in 2023 and has seen success. The unit has recovered stolen goods worth over $4.5 million in the last nine months alone. It’s not just about the stolen kicks; it is also about the dangerous activities the robbers could be using the money from the stolen goods for.
“My office – aided by financial support from Attorney General Kwame Raoul – will continue to aggressively pursue organized retail crime organizations, which have been shown to fund other illegal activity,” Sheriff Dart said.
After appearing in court on Sunday, Bautista was released from custody pending trial for a felony theft charge, for which a date wasn’t announced.
The police department even included a few pictures of the sneakers picked up in the raid, and they include over 30 pairs of the Women’s Air Jordan 12 “Phantom,” which were part of Jordan’s most recent holiday releases. Others include stacks and stacks of the November 2024-released Air Jordan 3 “Black Cement'” and unreleased A Ma Maniére x Air Jordan 3 “Diffused Blue” that hits stores in March. The Air Jordan 1 “Black Toe Reimagined”- as noted by the distinct boxes on the floor- a March release- was also stolen.
That means all the stolen Nikes found in the warehouse are mainly winter releases, meaning the warehouse was freshly stocked when cops barged in.
