Owners of at least two women’s clothing boutiques in the Dallas-Fort Worth area say bold thieves have targeted them and swiped thousands of dollars worth of merchandise.
One of the affected store owners said what is especially disturbing is who the crooks brought along with them.
The first retail theft occurred on July 22 at about 3 p.m. at My Secret Closet, a boutique along Preston Road in Far North Dallas.
Owner Debbie Downs didn’t realize what had transpired until the following day when she went to move a rack of costly ‘prairie dresses.’
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“I was going to move the dresses, and then I looked to where I was going to move them, and I thought: Well, they’re not there,” she said. “Then I watched the video, and I was just in shock. I couldn’t even believe what I was seeing.”
Multiple surveillance cameras scattered throughout the high-end new and consignment shop captured four women, a child in tow, entering the store in pairs.
The video shows the women walking around the store wearing black skirts and white tops, appearing to scope out the merchandise.
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“According to my employee ... They all pretended like they were pregnant,” said Downs.
The women, she said, walked around holding their bellies.
The group is then captured, grabbing entire racks of prairie dresses priced at over $100 each.
“They took nine of these, wrapped and wrapped and wrapped and unzipped their skirt and stuffed them in there,” said Downs, demonstrating with several small and medium dresses.
They also eyed high-end designer handbags, including Louis Vuitton. Fortunately, Downs said her handbags are always tethered by a security cord, requiring a sales associate to unlock them.
She can’t be sure, but Downs believes the crooks must have been wearing specialized garments to carry so much merchandise and somehow block sensors from sounding at the door.
“They did over $4,000 worth of merchandise, mostly on new and a few on the resale side,” she said. “We probably have more merchandise that’s missing, and we won’t know [until] toward the end of the season,” she said.
The most alarming part, she said, is the child in tow.
"Heartbreaking,” said Downs. “Why do you have that child with you? Are you training her to take your footsteps in the future? I will never understand that. She was cute, a little bow in her hair and it’s so wrong. So wrong. These women need to be stopped.”
It wasn’t until Downs posted the video online that she discovered she may not have been the only boutique targeted on July 22. The owner of Striped Box Boutique in Frisco contacted Downs with an incredible account.
“The same women that hit them about an hour after myself,” said Downs.
Melissa Mitchell, who owns Striped Box Boutique, located along the Dallas North Tollway, told NBC 5 that her shop was hit at about 4 p.m.
She said they were in and out in three minutes, stealing long dresses, jewelry, and tops of all sizes.
“It terrified staff that was there,” said Mitchell.
The women stole at least $1,600 worth of merchandise, though Mitchell said the list of missing items continues to grow.
The small business owner said the money was coming from my pocket. She described the incident as ‘unsettling’ and violating her space.
NBC 5 reached out to police departments in Dallas and Frisco. Both departments are investigating, but investigators in Frisco aren't convinced the thefts were done by the same people.
The Dallas Police Department issued an official news release confirming officers responded to a theft call in the 18000 block of Preston Road on July 23. The preliminary investigation determined that unknown suspects entered the location and took property. According to authorities, the suspects left the area, and no arrests have been made.
Frisco police said they are investigating the retail theft in their city. While the women in Frisco do look and act like the women in the Dallas theft, investigators are not sure if they are the same people.
‘While we believe the suspects are part of the same group, we can’t say with 100% certainty they are the same,’ said Frisco police spokesman Grant Cottingham.
Detectives also examine similar cases reported in Grapevine and Willow Park, near Weatherford. Thursday marks one month since the theft.
Downs is also expressing frustration over the lack of updates from Dallas police.
“Wondering if this is what our city has come down to,” she asks. “Is it a lack of leadership? Is it a lack of enough staffing? Where does the problem lie?”
Downs fears the women may keep targeting small businesses unless police act quickly.
Both shop owners are grateful for the support they have received from customers and their communities in the past few weeks.
Downs said thefts leave them no choice but to raise prices on other items.
To the crooks, Downs says: “Shame on you. Shame on you. Us business owners work very, very hard and there’s not very many mom-and-pop shops left … And shame on you for carrying that little child with you. To watch what you’re doing.”
Anyone with information is urged to contact police in Dallas and Frisco:
- Frisco Police case number: 24-084745
- Dallas Police case number: 112799-2024
