Former Target vice-chairman says the internet is 'like a flea market on steroids' for getting rid of stolen products

• A former Target vice-chairman said the internet had driven retail theft "through the roof."
• Online marketplaces are "like a flea market on steroids" for selling stolen goods, he told Fox Business.
• Target said this week it's closing nine stores because of theft and organized retail crime.

The former vice-chairman of Target says that the internet is "like a flea market on steroids" for thieves looking to get rid of stolen goods.

Gerald Storch told Fox Business on Wednesday that the internet had driven retail theft "through the roof."

"First of all, it helps all the gangs organize. So they get together through social media and say, 'show up here now and let's do it together,'" he said.

"Secondly, the marketplace on the internet is the ultimate fencing operation," Storch continued. "It's like a flea market on steroids for getting rid of the product. So anything you steal, you can monetize it really fast on the internet."

"Sometimes it's many, many layers of distribution before it even gets anywhere near a marketplace, and by the last layer could be a legitimate business person who's buying this from some guy with a warehouse," he said.

Retailers across the US have said they're observing a significant uptick in organized retail crime and violence against store workers. Target announced this week that it was closing nine stores in New York, Seattle, Portland, and the Bay Area, which it attributed to theft and crime "threatening the safety" of its staff and shoppers.

"It just makes you want to cry because we have worked so hard to get stores into markets like this," Storch told Fox Business about Target's announcement. Storch had worked at the company for more than 12 years, including serving as vice-chairman from 2001 to 2005.

Target said in May that it expected to take a $500 million hit in profits this year due to missing inventory, largely because of theft and organized retail crime.

Steps the retailer has taken to combat retail crime include hiring more security staff, providing training to store leaders on de-escalating safety issues, putting items that are prone to theft in locking cases, and investing in cyber defense.