Maryland officials trying to clean up theft of Tide detergent

When doing your laundry these days, you might be considered a fortunate person if you are using Tide as your detergent. The cost of the popular product has reportedly increased during this dark economy, making the cleaning product a tempting target for theft.

We discussed this criminal matter in a past post, in which we indicated that Tide is being stolen off of store shelves in mass quantity in order to be sold for profit. Maryland officials have been on the case of Tide theft and recently made a big bust related to the trendy crime.

Last week, patrons who were visiting a certain nail salon in Capitol Heights, Maryland, got more out of their visit than a mani/pedi. Authorities busted into the shop, told everyone to get on the ground and ultimately arrested several shop employees for the alleged theft of Tide as well as other items.

The suspects from this particular arrest allegedly bought stolen Tide, diluted it with water and then exported the stolen, low-quality product to stores in Vietnam, where consumers think that they are getting a good deal on the real deal. The busts likely won’t stop here, as authorities still see Tide theft as a problem within Maryland and the surrounding areas and continue to put significant effort toward the investigation of the trend.

It might sound odd, but all eyes are on the laundry detergent aisle these days. And if for some reason you have a stockpile of Tide detergent in your home, you might want to keep proof that the product is all paid for.

Source: NBC News – WRC, “Maryland Cops Clean Up Tide Theft Ring,” July 13, 2012