APD issues arrest warrant for repeat retail thief accused of $21K theft spree

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (KRQE) – Albuquerque police are looking for a man with a history of committing retail theft. Now, they have a new warrant for his arrest for a series of thefts at the store Lululemon.

“Because at the end of the day, if we can get them to stay behind bars then we’re hoping that these types of incidents happen less and less,” says APD Deputy Commander Joshua Hawkes. He’s talking about one of their top offenders who now has a warrant for organized retail crime.

He has been identified as Ferron Mendez. “He has the seven incidents for organized crime with the Lululemon store and it totaled over $21,000 worth of merchandise,” Hawkes says.

Police say Mendez had stolen products from the Lululemon Store in the Uptown shopping center multiple times. Hawkes says Mendez would sometimes steal with a man and, in other cases, with a woman who police are still trying to identify.

“He enters the store usually with another individual. They’ll usually go, they’ll split it up and go to different sides of the store. Usually, they’ll grab a bag displayed in the store and loading up merchandise,” says Hawkes.

Across at least seven different thefts, police say the store employees are frustrated and this isn’t the first time Mendez is charged with putting employees in danger. In 2017, a Circle K clerk shot him in the chest after Mendez tried to rob the store near 98th and I-40.

Police hope the new shoplifting cases will keep him behind bars for longer. “He’s never been charged with the new law and the past two charges he has is under the new law. One of them is for shoplifting; felony level. We’re able to aggregate those cases,” says Hawkes.

Mendez now has a warrant for his arrest. “At the end of the day, it affects everybody in the community whether it’s the consumer going into the store because now they are paying higher prices or if it’s the retailer they are losing that merchandise too,” Hawkes says.

After the Circle K shooting, Mendez pleaded guilty to attempted robbery and conspiracy as part of a deal with prosecutors. He was given probation. Since then, court records show Mendez has been charged in several more cases; accused of shoplifting, drug possession, and trespassing.

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