5 CA Walgreens To Close Amid 'Organized Retail Crime'

SAN FRANCISCO, CA — Walgreens is set to close five stores in the Bay Area amid unrelenting reports of "organized retail crime," the conglomerate announced. The news comes as San Francisco's reputation continues to be dragged down by reports of widespread shoplifting.

The locations, all in San Francisco, have been overcome with excessive theft and will close down next month, Walgreens spokesperson Phil Caruso said, according to SF Gate.

"Organized retail crime continues to be a challenge facing retailers across San Francisco, and we are not immune to that," Caruso said. "Retail theft across our San Francisco stores has continued to increase in the past few months to five times our chain average. During this time to help combat this issue, we increased our investments in security measures in stores across the city to 46 times our chain average in an effort to provide a safe environment."

Walgreens employees will likely be transferred to other stores, the company said.

Here's when the following locations will close, according to multiple reports:

• Nov. 8 - 2550 Ocean Ave. Prescription files will be transferred to 1630 Ocean Ave.
• Nov. 11 - 4645 Mission St. Prescription files will be transferred to 965 Geneva St.
• Nov. 15 - 745 Clement St. Prescription files will be transferred to 3601 California St.
• Nov. 15 - 300 Gough St. Prescription files will be transferred to 2145 Market St.
• Nov. 17 - 3400 Cesar Chavez St. Prescription files will be transferred 2690 Mission St.

Ahsha Safai, a San Francisco supervisor representing District 11, took to social media on Tuesday to express his disappointment in the closure of the Walgreens on Mission Street.

"I am completely devastated by this news — this Walgreens is less than a mile from seven schools and has been a staple for seniors, families and children for decades," he tweeted. "This closure will significantly impact this community.

"The City needs to act with a sense of urgency to reduce and deter the number of incidents of commercial retail theft," he said.

Reports and video posted to social media of brazen shoplifting in the city have sparked outrage in recent months. Over the summer, shoplifters donning masks carried armfuls of designer handbags as they ran out of a downtown Neiman Marcus department store and into getaway cars.

In June, a man wearing a mask was caught on video at a Walgreens as he placed stolen goods into a trash bag before he left the store on his bicycle.

Mayor London Breed last month and Police Chief Bill Scott made a joint announcement to dedicate more police, bolster coordinations and develop easier says to report thieves.

"We care about criminal justice reform. We care about second chances. We care about making sure that people are not wrongly accused," Breed said. "But don’t take our kindness for weakness, our compassion for weakness."

Walgreens company also closed another location near the same area last year after an uptick in crime, the San Francisco Chronicle reported.

That store lost $1,000 in stolen merchandise every day, the newspaper reported.

In June, the company told ABC7 that theft in their San Francisco stores was four times the average of their stores across the country. The stores also spends 35 times more on security guards in the Bay Area city compared with the rest of its locations.

Target locations in San Francisco were also forced to trim hours of operation and bolster security in response to "alarming" crime rates over the summer.

Other retailers in San Francisco have also reported a rise in security issues, including H&M, Gap and Marshalls, Brian Harper-Tibaldo, a spokesperson for Target, previously told Patch.

"Target is engaging local law enforcement, elected officials and community partners to address our concerns," Harper-Tibaldo said. "With the safety of our guests, team members and communities as our top priority, we've temporarily reduced our operating hours in five San Francisco stores."

SEE MORE: Some CA Target Stores Close Early Amid 'Alarming' Rise In Theft

The Associated Press contributed to this report.