Robert Whitley smiled wide as he showed off the mountains of merchandise inside his sprawling warehouse. There were stacks of paper towels that rose to the ceiling. Enough Huggies diapers to supply a day care. And large vats of blue and green laundry detergent of mysterious provenance.
“At the right price, I don’t care what it is, it’s going to sell,” Whitley, a 71-year-old grandfather with a salt-and-pepper mustache, said during a recent tour of his facility.
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He may not fit the profile of a crime boss, but federal prosecutors have described Whitley, who goes by Mr. Bob, as the leader of a multimillion dollar shoplifting ring.
From 2011 to 2019, he sold more than $6 million worth of stolen goods — everything from razors to Rogaine to teeth-whitening strips — on Amazon and other online marketplaces, according to court papers. Prosecutors say he paid professional shoplifters to steal specific items from drug stores, supermarkets and big box retailers across Georgia.
The case against Whitley was built not just by federal agents but corporate investigators with CVS, Target and Publix, representing the kind of collaboration that has grown more prevalent amid what industry groups say is a historic spike in organized retail crime.
Whitley was sentenced to nearly six years behind bars last October after pleading guilty to one count of interstate transport of stolen property. He’s expected to report to federal prison in June.
