articleThe Brief A 42-year-old woman is charged with stealing more than $10,000 in merchandise as part of an organized retail theft investigation. Authorities recovered tens of thousands of dollars in suspected stolen goods from storage units, and the investigation into others involved remains ongoing. A Chicago woman has been charged after investigators linked her to an organized theft crew accused of stealing more than $100,000 in merchandise from retailers across the area. According to investigators, the crew operated throughout northeastern Illinois and would return the stolen merchandise to retailers in exchange for store credit. Authorities said tens of thousands of dollars worth of stolen merchandise were recovered from the units.