Some resort to stealing when money is tighthttp://www.14wfie.com/global/story.asp?s=9983952
Posted: March 10, 2009 10:55 PM
Updated: March 10, 2009 10:55 PM
By Brandon Bartlett - bio | email | Twitter
Posted by Sarah Harlan - email
EVANSVILLE, IN (WFIE) - As the saying goes: desperate times call for desperate measures, but the items being stolen now aren't the usual high-ticket items.
Officials said the bad economy might be leading some to steal items worth only a few bucks.
"If you do this, most of the time you do get caught," EPD Detective Bob Wies said.
A rash of shoplifting cases in Vanderburgh County has landed several in jail, and the items stolen aren't the high priced items you'd imagine.
"They don't make a lot of money, they didn't think it was so wrong to take something that wasn't so expensive," Wies said.
Just Monday night, Vanderburgh County sheriff's deputies say two 18-year-old women from Owensboro stole a pair of $5 flip flops, some underwear and a bottle of Paris Hilton perfume from a Gordman's store.
"Whether it be 15-cents or $500, it's still a felony," Wies said.
One of the women, Haley Pippin said she made an adolescent decision, that she says will never happen again.
In another incident, 27-year-old Bridgette Scroggins, with her two-year-old daughter with her is accused of stealing a pair of shoes.
Deputies said she spit at them when they tried to arrest her.
Evansville police say 24-year-old Travis Thacker stole a radar detector from Target and 46-year- old Cal Bigbee stole a package of sausage from a Buy-Low store.
"Almost all the time the surveillance catches them and many cases we're notified before they even leave the store and they're arrested on the spot," Wies said.
14 News contacted the store managers of Gordman's, Best Buy and Target.
Many confirmed a rise in shoplifting, and blame it on the bad economy.
None would talk about their security policies on camera.
A security officer for Target said they do have a policy in place to identify and deal with shoplifting cases, cases that are unfortunately on the rise.
"If you've ever been convicted of a felony, you'll have a hard time getting a job in certain areas," Wies said. "It really carries with you."
Detectives say they encourage stores to press charges, and that means if you're caught, expect to face jail time, even if you take $5 flip flops.
©2009 WFIE. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
No comments:
Post a Comment