Tide Laundry Detergent Theft Ring Alleged After Bust At Maryland Barber Shop

Tide has become a hot commodity for thieves in certain parts of the country. Officials say the item is traded among the black market but is still used for its intended purpose.

Police recovered about $125,000 worth of black market goods in the back of a Maryland barbershop, where containers of Tide laundry detergent sat among knock-off shoes and counterfeit jeans, FOX 5 reports.

A lawyer for the store told FOX 5 all the goods belonged to the owner and the incident was all a big misunderstanding.

However, police have said the evidence in the case suggests otherwise, and the incident remains under investigation.

In recent months, Tide detergent has been eyed by thieves, who snag the product due to an apparent high demand for the laundry soap on the black market.

Interestingly, officials have said the soap isn't being used for any reason other than its intended purpose: cleaning clothes, the Associated Press reports.

The containers, which retail for about $10 to $20, have been dubbed "liquid gold" by some. But for many business owners, stocking the product isn't worth the potential monetary loss.

"There are some stores that will no longer sell the product because it gets stolen just that often,” Julie Parker, a spokesperson for Maryland's Prince George's County Police Department, told CBS Baltimore.

For others, adding electronic security devices to the containers seems to be the answer.

Shoppers at some local markets say the trend could be a result of the tough economy.

"I think it's a very desperate situation when people have to steal a very basic need that should be common to us all," Traci Singer told Oklahoma's KFOR.

Tide representatives have called the targeting of their products by thieves "unfortunate," but have not offered an official explanation regarding the cause of the thefts, according to the Associated Press.

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Comments

[Aroundtheworldin20years]

12:21 AM on 04/02/2012

A little bit of military subculture; A bottle of Tide in the front window of your housing unit means Hubby is away and you want company.

[Gasparilla]

10:09 AM on 03/25/2012

Another of those state of mind products.

[George McAulay]

11:44 PM on 03/24/2012

Foolish to think they could get clean away

[Terre Watt]

10:24 PM on 03/24/2012

This is important....WHY

[Michael D OBrien]

10:00 PM on 03/24/2012

I'd just like to thank the authorities for 'cleaning this mess up!'

[Edwin Keever Jr]

09:45 PM on 03/24/2012

Why did Buckweet wash his cloths in tide? Because it was to cold out tide.

[CDL1]

05:00 PM on 03/24/2012

People have been doing this for a couple yrs now. I'm surprised there's been no story on shaving blades. Mach 3 and Fusion razors have been hot sellers on the low end black market for a long time now.

[quicks9]

06:54 PM on 03/24/2012

they cannot even stop the oldest profession in the world not to mention the politicians with the insider info.

[Michael D OBrien]

10:06 PM on 03/24/2012

A couple years back, local news did a story on a guy doing exactly what your talking about.[Boston]
His apartment looked like a CVS warehouse!
And he was 'fillin'' alot of 'prescriptions' too!

[RandyMan7027]

03:52 PM on 03/24/2012

Snopes lists the truth of this rumor as "undetermined." Sure people will steal anything they can but this seems more of a viral marketing ploy to me --designed to raise the perceived value of Tide in the minds of consumers.

[retiredfemale]

11:19 PM on 03/24/2012

I agree, I have not found Tide to be any better than most store brands that cost a lot less. I mean it is laundry soap big deal, pretty much anything will do the job.

[Iya Sapa Mato]

03:46 PM on 03/24/2012

Yea 'wash'! Or they hope to turn the tide of battle in their favor come November.

[Iya Sapa Mato]

03:42 PM on 03/24/2012

It was democraks that needed all that tide to was their dirty laundry.

[Michael D OBrien]

10:08 PM on 03/24/2012

You should try it, I hear it works well on 'koolaid stains!'

[Iya Sapa Mato]

12:06 PM on 03/25/2012

Michael D Obrien First hand knowledge? Have you also tried it internally? Your bubbling over with wit!

[Simplecomplexity]

03:36 PM on 03/24/2012

The word today is GENERIC!!!! Seriously people.... I saw the price of Tide and several other liquid laundry detergents the other day and just shook my head and laughed out loud. It'd be cheaper to just buy new clothes for crying out loud.

Buy no names. They work. I've been doing that for years to save money so I don't have to buy generic WINE! :-)

[RandyMan7027]

03:55 PM on 03/24/2012

studies conclude that it's not so much the detergent or amount that's used but the agitation of the washing machine that results in most of the cleaning. Beating clothes on a river rock has worked for centuries.

[Michael D OBrien]

10:13 PM on 03/24/2012

Come on Double-O.
Beating clothes on rocks......
Would be like beating your own.......................
Ah, guess it works for some............
And over time, they'll both look like hell!

[wolfvampire]

03:18 PM on 03/24/2012

It should be a human right.

[Red Russet]

03:17 PM on 03/24/2012

If you are going to wash clothes, Tide is the best. If you are using it in a meth operation, a cheaper brand will do ya.

[bioShell]

03:09 PM on 03/24/2012

Printer cartridges lighter, smaller, and much more expensive.

[Hell Yeah Im Uhmercan]

03:03 PM on 03/24/2012

We need to elect Romney for President so he can bring the price of detergent down.

The Tide is too damn high!

[RButler]

03:10 PM on 03/24/2012

Gingrich wll give $2.50/gal Tide.

[Amalek]

03:11 PM on 03/24/2012

Newt promises $2.50 Tide.