17 people busted in $1 million Apple store robbery ring, California officials say

(FILES) In this file photo taken on September 7, 2016 the Apple logo is seen on the outside of Bill Graham Civic Auditorium in San Francisco, California. - The EU on September 6, 2018 approved US tech giant Apple's plan to buy leading song-recognition app Shazam, saying the move would not reduce choice for music streaming consumers. The bloc launched a detailed probe into the deal with London-based Shazam, worth a reported $400 million, in April, at the request of several EU states amid fears it could harm competition in an intensifying battle of streaming services. (Photo by Josh Edelson / AFP)JOSH EDELSON/AFP/Getty Images less (FILES) In this file photo taken on September 7, 2016 the Apple logo is seen on the outside of Bill Graham Civic Auditorium in San Francisco, California. - The EU on September 6, 2018 approved US tech giant ... more Photo: JOSH EDELSON / AFP/Getty Images Photo: JOSH EDELSON / AFP/Getty Images Image 1 of / 54 Caption Close 17 people busted in $1 million Apple store robbery ring, California officials say 1 / 54 Back to Gallery

Police busted a group of 17 people they say were responsible for a series of brazen Apple store robberies in 19 California counties in which suspects stormed past shoppers and employees to rip merchandise off counters.

The robberies, which happened in some Bay Area stores, caused more than $1 million in losses to Apple. The suspects wore hoodies and would enter stores in large groups to snatch products on display “in a matter of seconds,” California Attorney General Xavier Becerra said in a statement.

“We will continue our work with local law enforcement authorities to extinguish this mob mentality and prosecute these criminals to hold them accountable,” he said.

The blitz hits — often captured on surveillance footage — followed a familiar pattern: A group of suspects would storm into stores as unsuspecting customers browsed items, rip merchandise from tabled chargers and sprint out to a getaway car.

Officials on Thursday didn’t specify the number of robberies, but at the beginning of the month KGO-TV counted at least 21 “grab-and-run” thefts since mid-May across the state.

Becerra said seven adults were arrested Tuesday and booked in Alameda County jail, and another suspect is in custody in Sonoma County. Charges for conspiracy to commit grand theft were filed against suspects in Fresno, Santa Clara and Alameda counties.

Arrest warrants were issued for nine other suspects, Becerra said.

The suspects charged in Fresno County were identified as Leo David Smith III, Leo David Smith IV, Yoshua Neshon Barker, Armon Darzell James and Kennith Martin Jr., according to court documents. Prosecutors are charging the five with conspiracy to commit grand theft and grand theft of personal property after officials said they stole more than $25,000 worth of property from the Apple store at Fashion Fair Mall in Fresno on July 7.

There were 10 suspects named in Alameda County charging documents, including two who apparently also were charged in Fresno. They were identified as Leo David Smith, Joshua Jamal Cole, Nahom Ephrem Yemane, Cody Stewart, Antoine Derell Johnson, Branson Golden, Yoshua Neshun Barker, Taye Duran Davis, Jeral Wimberly and Jeremi Hanks. They’re all charged with commercial burglary and second-degree commercial burglary for an alleged Sept. 25 crime in Alameda County.

Officials say more than $60,000 worth of merchandise was stolen from an Apple store at that time. The complaint does not list the exact location, but the East Bay Times reported a snatch and grab involving six to eight suspects at an Emeryville Apple store on this date.

Apple spokesman Nick Leahy declined to comment on the arrests and referred questions to the state Department of Justice. He wouldn’t confirm or deny the company’s rumored “kill switch,” which can supposedly disable stolen devices, or any other antitheft measures.

“We don’t comment on matters of security,” Leahy said.

Apple thieves hit the Bay Area hard in August, striking stores in Santa Rosa, Walnut Creek, Emeryville and Corte Madera.

Just after 8 p.m. on Aug. 29, police said, three men in hoodies ran off with $35,000 worth of electronics from the store in the Santa Rosa Plaza, an indoor mall near the city’s downtown.

Four days earlier, thieves rushed into Walnut Creek’s Apple Store at Broadway Plaza and made off with $30,000 worth of iPhones and laptops from displays in the store, police said. They fled in a black Mercedes-Benz waiting out front.

Authorities have not confirmed which stores the suspects are being charged with robbing.

The San Luis Obispo Police Department and Oakland Police Department led the investigation, along with the assistance of several law enforcement agencies across the state, officials said.

Retail thefts cost California businesses millions and leave them prone to copycat criminals, the attorney general noted.

“Ultimately, consumers pay the cost of this merchandise hijacking,” Becerra said.

Megan Cassidy is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: megan.cassidy@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @meganrcassidy