HOUSTON -- Note: The following story is a verbatim transcript of an Investigators story that aired on Wednesday, Oct. 3, 2007, on KPRC Local 2 at 6 p.m.

You may not realize this, but the reselling of stolen goods costs companies billions of dollars each year.

Tonight, Local 2 Investigates has learned a Houston man is the first in Texas charged under a new law designed to crackdown on this type of crime. KPRC Local 2 investigative reporter Robert Arnold has the story.

"Depending on how good they are and what type of item they're after, they can get just a few hundred dollars to several thousand dollars in just two to three minutes," said Karl Langhorst, director of loss prevention for Randall's supermarkets.

You're watching just a few examples of a $34 billion a year crime. It's not shoplifting. It's organized retail theft.

"They hit numerous stores in a day," said Langhorst. "They will go from store-to-store-to-store. Again, this is their full-time job. They don't have anything else to do."

"When the crooks hit these stores, they don't just come in and grab whatever they can grab. They'll actually come in with a shopping list of the items they need to steal and exactly how much they'll get paid for each item," Arnold reported.

Langhorst said he uncovered this type of scenario when large amounts of wine and champagne started disappearing off store shelves across Houston.

Langhorst and the Texas Alcoholic Beverage Commission launched an investigation.

Harris County resident Robert Connelly was arrested during an undercover operation. Detectives tell Local 2 Connelly wasn't actually stealing the goods. Investigators reported Connelly was buying the stolen merchandise then reselling it.

"I'd like to ask you about your arrest," Arnold asked Connelly.

Connelly wouldn't talk with Local 2.

State investigators said Connelly is the first man in Texas charged under a new law that stiffens the punishment for retail theft and allows law enforcement to link multiple crimes under one charge.

Langhorst and his colleagues have been pushing for this change in the law for years.

"We've educated law enforcement so they're aware that this is organized theft and not shoplifting," said Langhorst. "That's been a hurdle we've needed to overcome."

Langhorst said the change in the law is necessary since these thieves target high-dollar over-the-counter medications and cosmetics. Law enforcement reports these stolen products are usually sold on the Internet or in flea markets.

The Texas Retailers Association reports organized retail theft results in a loss of $150 million a year in sales tax revenue for our state.