san mateo, california, just outside of san francisco. these videos offering a glimpse inside the sophistication of organized shoplifting rings, san francisco in epicenter, so much so that walgreens says it will soon be closing five of its stores here. that in addition to the 17 stores the retailer had previously shuttered in the past few years. this is a real blow to san francisco. it s a blow to the merchants, tg it s a blow to our reputation as a city. a thief grabbing items off store shelves. this viral video captured in june at a san francisco walgreens in plain view of a security guard. the store among those being shut down. you have street level thieves who are selling to boosters, who are selling to larger syndicates who are building million dollar businesses selling stolen product. it s not something that is limited to san francisco. it s happening all over the country. san francisco is a focal point now. jason brewer of the retail industry leaders association
medicine. in reality, it s a warehouse full of stolen goods. what you are looking at is not petty shoplifting. what you are looking at is an organized criminal ring. reporter: law enforcement making this bust last year in san mateo, california, just outside san francisco. these videos offering a glimpse inside the sophistication of organized shoplifting rings. san franciscan epicenter. so much so walgreens said it will soon close five of its stores here. that, in addition to the 17 stores the retailer had previously shuttered in the past few years. this is a real blow to san francisco. it s a blow to the merchants, to our reputation as a city. reporter: it begins with something like this. a thief hurriedly grabbing items off store shelves. this viral video captured at a san francisco walgreens in plain view of a security guard. you have street level thieves selling to boosters, who are selling to larger syndicates,