Arrest Made, Others Possible in Organized Retail Crime Spree

A 25-year-old Lawrence, Mass. man was arrested Tuesday in Salem for his alleged role in a series of organized retail thefts, according to Salem Police.

Edwin Echevarria, 25, was charged with two felony counts of organized retail crime enterprise, one felony count of conspiracy to commit theft and theft by unauthorized taking. His bail was set at $25,000 cash.

According to police, they responded to Sears at 5 p.m. Tuesday for a report of an ongoing employee theft.

Police said that on at least five dates starting July 20, an employee of Sears working with several others stole from Sears using false refunds, false rewards points, false ringing in of merchandise and theft of cash totaling $2,500.

Police detailed three of those specific thefts.

On one occasion, a female bought an air conditioner valued at $359, then got a refund of that amount without returning the appliance.

The same female another day purchased luggage for $979 and was charged $5.59 for a screwdriver.

During yet another transaction, a total of $1,148 in merchandise was purchased and later a fraudulent return of the entire purchase amount was made while only a pair of $18 pants was taken back.

Police said that the case remains under investigation and more arrests are possible. They did not detail Echevarria's role in the alleged crime enterprise.

Echevarria could not post bail and was held at Rockingham County Jail pending arraignment.