Police say five people have been charged in an alleged string of butter thefts in the Waterloo, Ont., region.

Investigators say there were 15 reported incidents involving the theft of butter and ghee from grocery stores in Kitchener, Cambridge and Waterloo between September of last year and February of this year.

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They say more than $8,000 of merchandise was stolen.

Police say the suspects — four men between the ages of 24 and 38, along with a 25-year-old woman — have been charged with offences including theft under $5,000.

Other jurisdictions have also reported large-scale butter thefts in recent months.

In January, police in Peel Region charged six people in connection with the theft of butter and ghee from grocery stores in the Brampton, Ont., area, saying the losses amounted to more than $60,000 dollars.

Three of the suspects in that case were charged with theft under $5,000 and three with possession of property obtained by crime.