22-year-old Der Patel was caught stealing designer clothes from an upscale Miami store over a period of months.
Dhir Patel, a 22-year-old man, was caught stealing tens of thousands of dollars worth of designer clothing in a calculated manner from the Wynwood neighborhood of Miami, Florida. He did not run away after stealing the clothes, but rather returned repeatedly and continued the theft between March 30 and last Monday.
Miami Police Department investigators said Dhir Patel was visiting the store to “sell items” in exchange for money. At the same time, he was stealing some clothes and hiding them, as shown in the surveillance cameras that were tracked after the store owner discovered that some expensive items had disappeared.Investigators said he stole about $41,550 worth of designer goods, but the owner later estimated the amount may have been much more.“We originally started with $41,000 since we calculated it, and now it’s about $55 to $60,000,” owner Louis Negrich later told Local 10 News, adding that Patel also made some purchases at the upscale store, which is why his move didn’t initially raise alarm bells.An MPD arrest report said Patel, of Boynton Beach, “was walking around the store and selecting merchandise” during his visits, and investigators said “surveillance footage reportedly shows the individual concealing clothing inside a bag he brought with him.”
MPD officers said they arrested Patel for grand theft on Saturday after he returned to the store to sell more items. Authorities said he made a confession that was deleted from the report that was made public. “Just don’t steal,” Negrich said. “It’s that simple. Everything comes back to bite you.”Patel posted $5,000 bail and was released from jail, court records show.
