District Attorney Marc Bennett says in a news release that Dillon’s and Target stores donated thousands of dollars of merchandise to help the undercover effort, which operated from February 2013 to September.

The undercover agents would offer the merchandise to people in businesses and residents in Wichita that were knowingly buying stolen goods for resell.

The release says stolen merchandise was recovered from several locations. Three of the eight people charged have pleaded guilty to various charges, including felony theft and benefit fraud. Some of the suspects used government benefit cards in some transactions.

The investigation included law enforcement officers from Sedgwick and Reno counties, Hutchinson police and federal agencies.