FCPD: Three people charged for months-long candle theft spree | FFXnow
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FCPD: Three people charged for months-long candle theft spree | FFXnow

Jun 04, 2025

Three people have been arrested and charged with allegedly stealing thousands of dollars in candles from businesses at shopping centers in Kingstowne, Greenbriar and Springfield.

The Fairfax County Police Department says the “organized crew” of D.C. residents was behind 16 different thefts that occurred in February through May. The value of the candles stolen in each case ranged from $600 to over $4,300.

The first incident that came to the department’s attention occurred on Feb. 2 at 1:02 p.m. in the 5800 block of Kingstowne Center, according to a press release published today (Tuesday).

“The complainant reported that three suspects entered the business and stole merchandise,” the FCPD said. “The suspects fled in a vehicle prior to police arrival.”

Subsequent reports of similar thefts suggested “a clear pattern of organized retail theft,” police say, prompting Criminal Investigations Division detectives to take over the case.

In addition to the Feb. 2 larceny, police believe the group committed nine other thefts at Kingstowne Towne Center and five at Greenbriar Town Center near Fair Oaks, all between Feb. 10 and May 21. Most recently, the FCPD says $600 in candles were stolen from a business in the 6700 block of Frontier Drive in Springfield — the Springfield Commons shopping center — on May 25.

In total, the value of the stolen candles amounted to approximately $32,000, police say.

Though it’s unclear how police identified the alleged suspects, Fugitive Tracking and Apprehension Team detectives arrested two men and a woman in D.C. on May 29 with the help of the U.S. Marshals.

A 34-year-old man has been charged with 10 counts each of grand larceny and larceny with the intent to sell, a 25-year-old woman faces four charges of conspiracy to commit larceny, and a 28-year-old man has been charged with five counts each of grand larceny and larceny with the intent to sell.

All three individuals are currently in custody at the D.C. Central Detention Facility and awaiting extradition to the Fairfax County Adult Detention Center, according to the FCPD.

The FCPD has been looking to crack down on retail theft, which Police Chief Kevin Davis described as the county’s “Achilles heel” in a briefing to the Board of Supervisors on May 27. The department intends to expand initiatives that have primarily focused on crime at the malls in Tysons, such as its Tysons Urban Team, to other shopping centers around the county.

Angela Woolsey is the site editor for FFXnow. A graduate of George Mason University, she worked as a general assignment reporter for the Fairfax County Times before joining Local News Now as the Tysons Reporter editor in 2020.