Men stole merchandise at every Lowes store from Lexington to Clarksville  Three Kentucky men are behind bars in Clarksville, Ind. after they were arrested for their alleged involvement in a multi-state theft ring. Police said 43-year-old Edward Roberts of Clay City, Ky., 23-year-old James McDowell of Irvine, Ky. and 37-year-old Michael McDowell of Irvine, Ky. are responsible for the theft of $50,000 to $80,000 worth of merchandise from nearly every Lowes store from Lexington, Ky. to Clarksville, Ind. During a news conference Thursday, Clarksville Police said their investigation began after a reported theft at the Lowes on Veteran's Parkway Jan. 14. However, during questioning the suspects admitted to hitting three to five stores a day since late November and the thefts were fueled by drug use. All three men are charged with forgery, maintaining a common nuisance, possession of a syringe and theft, but could face more charges in other Indiana counties and in Kentucky. wdrb.com

San Rafael, CA Police arrest two Richmond women in Macy's fraud investigation
Two Richmond women were arrested on allegations of trying to defraud a Terra Linda department store. Kendra Elaine Timmons, 46, and Kendra Charmaine Leah Garrett, 33, were booked into Marin County Jail on suspicion of burglary. Timmons was also booked on suspicion of identity theft. Police said the incident occurred Monday afternoon at the Mall at Northgate, where a woman at Macy's tried to put merchandise on a Macy's account with a false name and identification. The clerk called security and the store called police. Timmons and Garrett left the store and were arrested on Sao Augustine Way in the neighborhood just south of the mall. On Tuesday, both were charged with felony counts of grand theft and identity theft, said Deputy District Attorney Shawn Spaulding. Timmons was also charged with possession of a fake identification card. mercurynews.com


10-year-old girl, 5 women arrested on shoplifting charges at Oviedo, FL Mall  Police said a 10-year-old girl and five Romanian women are facing felony retail theft charges for stealing almost $3,000 worth of merchandise from stores at the Oviedo Mall. Investigators said the women, Denisa Bambaloi, Loredana Bambaloi, Norica Margel, Mirabela Ionita and Ruxandra Bambaloi, put the merchandise in handmade pouches hidden under their clothes. They were arrested on Monday. When mall security approached them, investigators said they tried to dump the stolen clothes under a store display. wftv.com

Two arrested, warrants issued in elaborate shoplifting ring in Savannah, GA  The Savannah-Chatham Metropolitan Police arrested a second member of a suspected shoplifting ring on Monday. Bridgett Watts, 21, was arrested on Monday and Charlainia Varner, 23, was arrested on Jan. 5 at her Clearwater Lane residence. Both women are charged with felony shoplifting and misdemeanor shoplifiting after being linked to thefts on Jan. 4 at the Walmart on the 1900 block of east Montgomery Cross Road and Kroger on Mall Boulevard. Both exited Walmart without paying for several hundred dollars in merchandise. The pair then abandoned the items in the parking lot during a foot pursuit by store security. They then fled the scene in a rented Ford Explorer with a Florida license plate driven by a thirds suspect. Immediately afterwards, Watts and Varner were driven to Kroger and stole more items. Varner was apprehended by Metro officers while attempting to flee. Investigators believe at least 10 more suspects are working with Watts and Varner in an elaborate shoplifting ring in Metro's Southside and Island precincts. wtoc.com

Trio swipes iPhones from Radio Shack in Lincoln Park, MI  It only took a couple of minutes on Sunday for thieves to steal thousands of dollars in phones from a Radio Shack in Lincoln Park. The robbery happened just before closing time at the store on Southfield Road near Dix Road. Surveillance video given to Local 4 by police showed three men, one of which appeared to be in a security guard uniform, entered the store together. While of the men asked a sales associate about tablet protectors, another man pulled out a gun. Police said the gunman told the sales associate to be calm because it was only a robbery and the men didn't want to hurt anyone. The men raided the store's storage cage and got away with nearly $8,000 in iPhones. clickondetroit.com

Fort Walton Beach, FL woman accused of over $300 theft of perfume, lotion from Marshall's  Fort Walton Beach woman is accused of taking three bottles of perfume and three boxes of lotion from Marshall's Department Store, 4477 Commons Drive. Okaloosa County Sheriff's deputies were called for the theft on Jan. 5, according to the arrest report. The loss prevention officer at the store said 39-year-old Patricia Ann Lovell had gone into the store and went to the women's department. Once there, she chose three perfumes and three lotions, putting all six in her purse, the report said. She tried to leave, but the loss prevention officer stopped her with the $344.94 in merchandise. Lovell said she had a "chemical imbalance" and couldn't afford medication for it, according to the report. She said believed she "stole the items due to this ‘imbalance.'" nwfdailynews.com

Man threw $1,500 of merchandise over wall to steal from Newport, SC Walmart  A small group of people worked together to try to steal from the Newport Walmart around 1 a.m. Wednesday morning, according to a Rock Hill police report. A store employee told police she saw Jonathan Kidwell, 36, of Selma, N.C., throwing items over the fence in the store's Garden Center into shopping carts on the other side. Another employee said the group had tied three shopping carts together and the items they threw into them included Keurig coffee machines, blenders and grills. The items were valued at more than $1,500. heraldonline.com

Naples, Fla., Lidz store hit for 381 hats valued at $9,400