Officials say the investigation, dubbed "Operation Whoville," involved a series of separate covert undercover sting operations at six Chicago-area malls including North Riverside, Old Orchard, Orland Square, Woodfield, Gurnee Mills and the Aurora Outlet Malls.
Arrests were also made at shops on Michigan Avenue and State Street in Chicago.
A total of 108 individuals were arrested over the last month and charged with theft of a wide variety of products including clothing, electronic products and jewelry.
Thefts also involved over-the-counter medicines and baby formula.
Authorities said hundreds of thousands of dollars in merchandise was stolen.
During the operation, authorities say they recovered narcotics and guns from several suspects.
