Flickr/j_lai

Organized criminals in Bowie these days certainly are practical. Rather than targeting flashy electronics or high-end merchandise, they're sticking to Safeway and they're stealing detergent.

WUSA9 reports that a small ring of thieves, three men and a woman, are operating at a Safeway Bowie. The suspects have made off with up to $9,000 in stolen household items.

"Apparently they've been doing this for several months," Cpl. Henry Tippett told WUSA9. "They're pretty organized at scoping out the store, realizing when there's not a lot of employees in the store, kind of distracting employees, and just walking out with thousands of dollars of merchandise at a time."

The grocery bandits have a particular eye for expensive items like laundry detergent and diapers. What they're doing with these items remains unclear, though Tippett suggests the thieves could be pawning the items or selling them on the aftermarket. "We just don't know at this point," he says.