Crime doesn't pay. In the case of Jeremy James Bean, 42 criminal charges led to fines. Maricopa County Attorney Rachel Mitchell imposed harsh penalties on Bean. Bean is currently charged with shoplifting in addition to a string of organized retail crimes. Between February 2022 and the summer of 2024, Bean is alleged to have used Home Depots in Chandler, Mesa and Phoenix as his personal theft sites, stealing nearly $60,000 worth of construction equipment.

The Maricopa County Attorney's Office released the full story in a recent announcement. Bean, who was caught on camera orchestrating the theft, has been charged with 38 counts of organized retail theft and one additional felony count of shoplifting. Add in the three misdemeanor shoplifting counts and you have a huge case file. Bean has no plans to make any more purchases at this time and is being held in jail on $35,000 bail. According to the Maricopa County Attorney's Office, Maricopa County On the website, some shoppers took the five-finger discount a little too literally.

Mitchell, the top prosecutor in Maricopa County, didn't mince words when expressing his opinion on the issue. He believes the impact of these crimes is much broader, echoing a sentiment familiar to those who follow the interplay of law, order and the economy. “At the end of the day, we all pay the price for those who commit these types of crimes,” Mitchell said, emphasizing that the true cost of crime always falls on honest consumers in the form of higher prices.