City and County Attorneys file lawsuit against West Side market accused of selling stolen goods

Both Columbus City Attorney Zach Klein and Franklin County Prosecuting Attorney Shayla Favor have taken steps to have a Hilltop market declared a public nuisance.

In a press release yesterday, Favor’s office released a statement that the two had filed a lawsuit against the owners of Herbert Market, which is located at 1121 Sullivant Ave. The suit alleges that the market violates the Ohio Corrupt Practices Act after “a clear and repeated pattern of receiving stolen property and reselling it for profit.”

Searches of the property regularly turned up evidence that the store was selling stolen goods, such as a “stockpile” of theft prevention devices that were seemingly removed from merchandise intended to be sold at different stores. It also alleges store owner Ahman Arman once admitted to purchasing stolen goods.

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“The City is committed to cracking down on shady retailers that traffic stolen goods, maintain a public nuisance and attempt to rip off businesses and consumers,” Klein said in a press release. “Business owners have a responsibility to remain in compliance with laws and regulations at all times, and thanks to the Division of Police, the County Prosecutor’s Office and the Property Action Team, we’ve brought a strong case to hold owners accountable and clean up this illicit activity along Sullivant Ave.”

According to the lawsuit, police responded to the store a total of 138 times since July 31, 2022, including reports of “a male threatening people with a gun, drug use, several overdoses, and harassment.” Between June 1 of 2023 and May 31 of last year, police had to divert nearly 600 hours of patrol time to one single Hilltop retailer in order to deter shoplifters.

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