This was unexpected.

Yahoo! News is reporting that thousands of boxes are littering Union Pacific’s train tracks in downtown Los Angeles. These boxes, largely due to a wave of recent thefts, are creating endless delays for consumers and merchants that likely cost millions, if not more.

Thieves have been raiding cargo containers, taking packages that belong to people from all over the country from retailers like Amazon, Target, Macy’s, Skechers, and others, leading to viral images on social media.

Data from the National Retail Federation found that the average loss from organized crime topped $700,000 per $1 billion in sales in 2020.

Making matters worse, reporters witnessed people picking through the boxes left behind by the thieves in the hopes of finding something left behind.

The robberies appear to be a byproduct of a widespread breakdown in pandemic-era public safety, which has bedeviled officials across major cities.

Read the wild article here. The Guardian also has reporting on this issue.