The Grandview Heights Division of Police is a founding member of a new Franklin County task force that has already recovered more than $145,000 in stolen merchandise and secured indictments against nine defendants since launching in March.

The task force, F.O.R.C.E. (the Fraud & Organized Retail Crime Engagement Task Force), was announced Aug. 6, by the Franklin County Sheriff's Office. It operates under Ohio Attorney General Andy Wilson's Organized Crime Investigations Commission and brings together seven agencies: the Franklin County and Delaware County sheriff's offices, Columbus Division of Police, Westerville Police Department, Clinton Township Police Department, Grandview Heights Division of Police and Homeland Security. Prosecutors from both counties also participate.

The task force exists because of the FORCE Act (House Bill 366), which Gov. Mike DeWine signed on April 23, 2025. The law lets prosecutors bundle thefts committed by the same suspect across multiple jurisdictions over a 12-month window into a single case. Stolen retail property valued at $7,500 or more can now be charged as a third-degree felony.

Before the law, Franklin County Prosecuting Attorney Shayla Favor's office could only charge crimes committed within its own jurisdiction, even when the same suspects hit stores across several counties.

That limitation is gone.

"We don't want the jurisdictional boundaries to be the reason why someone is not being held accountable," Favor said at the Aug. 6 announcement.

Investigators describe organized retail crime as far more than isolated shoplifting: groups steal large quantities of merchandise from multiple stores statewide, then resell the goods for profit. The Ohio Council of Retail Merchants estimates organized retail theft costs Ohio businesses $2 billion to $3 billion annually, losses the council says get passed along to consumers through higher prices. Nationally, 54% of retailers reported an increase in repeat-offender theft in 2025 compared to the prior year, according to the National Retail Federation.

For Grandview Heights, the task force adds investigative muscle to a community whose Grandview Avenue corridor, Grandview Yard and surrounding Tri-Village retail district depend on foot traffic and small-business commerce. Franklin County Sheriff Dallas Baldwin, who leads the task force, said the collaborative model is the point: "One agency can't do it, but by pulling resources, collaborating, it's like having one large force out there trying to affect it."

The task force has already coordinated with law enforcement in Michigan, Kentucky, Indiana and Pennsylvania, reflecting the multi-state reach of the theft networks it targets. No specific Grandview Heights cases have been disclosed, but the task force is actively operating across Franklin County.

Residents or business owners who want to report suspected organized retail theft can contact the Grandview Heights Division of Police or the Franklin County Sheriff's Office.