San Jose man arrested for 113 retail theft incidents, police say

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Johnny Pena, San Jose man accused of robbing more than one hundred stores since March.

SAN JOSE, Calif. - A single man allegedly responsible for over 100 retail thefts in San Jose is behind bars, police said Monday.

Johnny Pena was allegedly behind thousands of dollars worth of merchandise stolen from 113 businesses, including Home Depot, Lowes, Dick's Sporting Goods, and Target, according to police.

Police said their organized retail theft unit started investigating Pena in March. On Oct. 28, police arrested Pena and booked him into the Elmwood Men's Correctional Complex jail for grand theft.

Jail records indicate Pena is being held without bail.

"Retail theft harms our economy, levies a theft tax on working families, and makes us all feel less safe," said Mayor Matt Mahan about the arrest.

"This is an example of someone who has a blatant disregard for the law, victimizing over one hundred businesses here in San José," Police Chief Paul Joseph said. "Our Organized Retail Theft Detail has done an outstanding job in making sure suspects like Johnny Pena know what happens when they commit these crime sprees in our city."

Police said their investigation was possible because of an $8.4 million grant awarded to the department's organized retail theft unit.

Anyone with information about the retail thefts is asked to contact Det. David Moody at david.moody@sanjoseca.gov or (408) 277-4166.