Jacksonville Beach police say a crew of suspected shoplifters spent months raiding the Home Depot on Third Street South, walking off with more than $22,000 in merchandise before detectives finally moved in. Five people are now tied to what investigators describe as a retail-theft ring, facing a combined 97 criminal counts. Officers recovered nearly $2,500 in stolen items during the probe, while the rest is still tallied as loss, according to the department.
Charges and suspects
Investigators named the five defendants as Carrie Lynn Downs, Taurean Laurente Smith, Zeain Ray Hazlett, Dion Romero Mixson and Raymond Lorenzo Wright. Police say each suspect is linked to between two and 20 separate thefts, all tied to the same Home Depot location.
Together, the group faces 97 charges that include petit theft, multiple grand-theft counts and numerous counts of “coordinating with others to commit retail theft,” according to the Jacksonville Beach Police Department. One additional suspect still has an outstanding arrest warrant, the department noted.
Investigation and recovered goods
Detectives say the thefts took place between Jan. 2 and April 9 at the Jacksonville Beach Home Depot. Loss-prevention staff at the store provided key leads that helped build the case, according to police.
The department wrote that the scheme resulted in “more than $22,000” in stolen merchandise, with officers able to recover nearly $2,500 worth of goods during the investigation, according to the Jacksonville Beach Police Department. Police did not immediately release arraignment dates or say whether all five defendants have been booked into Duval County facilities.
How investigators tracked the ring
Jacksonville Beach detectives credit close coordination with store loss-prevention teams and targeted follow-ups for the arrests. Detective E. D. Filbert, listed as a point of contact on other Jacksonville Beach Police theft investigations, has led similar probes in the past, local coverage shows, according to Action News Jax.
The case lands at a time when organized retail crime has become a national headache for big-box stores. The National Retail Federation’s 2025 study reported that retailers saw an 18% jump in the average number of shoplifting incidents in 2024 compared with 2023, and many loss-prevention teams say law-enforcement partnerships are increasingly critical to building cases, according to the National Retail Federation.
Legal notes
Police say the defendants are facing a mix of petit theft and grand theft counts, along with multiple charges alleging coordination to commit retail theft. Under Florida law, theft of property valued at $750 or more is generally treated as grand theft and can be charged as a felony. The statute sets different degree levels and value thresholds for theft offenses, as outlined in Florida statutes, Section 812.014.
What residents can do
Police are still looking to firm up the case file. Anyone with video, receipts or other information tied to these incidents is asked to contact the Jacksonville Beach Police Department at (904) 270-1667 or reach out through the department’s online contact page, according to the City of Jacksonville Beach Police Department. Investigators say additional tips could help identify more leads and support ongoing retail-theft investigations.
