ATLANTA - Thirteen people were arrested Thursday in connection with a large-scale interstate fencing operation that dealt in over-the-counter pharmaceuticals and related merchandise, the FBI said. <br>
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The Atlanta-based operation bought large amounts of health and beauty products, stop-smoking aids, disposable cameras and other such items from more than 200 professional shoplifters in the Southeast and then sold them to a wholesaler in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., according to the FBI. <br>
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Most of the suspects are Pakistani or Indian nationals, the FBI said. Ten listed Atlanta-area addresses, two lived in Fort Lauderdale and one had no reported address. <br>
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The group bought as much as $100,000 worth of stolen merchandise per day, the FBI said, with the total value of the property exceeding $14 million. About $3 million in property was recovered when search warrants were executed. <br>
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The suspects were charged with conspiracy and interstate transportation of stolen property. <br>
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The arrests were the culmination of a two-year investigation involving FBI bureaus in Atlanta and Miami, the Immigration and Naturalization Service, the Florida Department of Law Enforcement, the Metro-Dade police in Miami and the Target Corp.
