On Thursday, June 23, at 10:02 p.m. Santa Monica police officers went to the Vons market located at 710 Broadway to investigate a theft suspect who had been detained by the loss prevention officers at the store. When the officers arrived at the store the loss prevention officers informed them that the man was seen entering the store and going to the alcohol aisle, whereupon he picked up a 750 ml bottle of Bacardi Rum, and put it into a reusable shopping bag that he was carrying. This presumably environmentally friendly filcher then proceeded to walk out of the store without making the slightest attempt to pay for the rum.
It was at that point that the loss prevention agents apprehended him and took him back into the store. The officers, after being presented with such intoxicating evidence, arrested the 19-year-old resident of Kataning, Pennsylvania, and he was charged with burglary and a probation violation. His bail was set at a sobering $20,000.
Editor’s Note: These reports are part of a regular police coverage series entitled “Alert Police Blotter” (APB), which injects some minor editorial into certain police activities in Santa Monica. Not all of the Mirror’s coverage of incidents involving police are portrayed in this manner. More serious crimes and police-related activities are regularly reported without editorial in the pages of the Santa Monica Mirror and its website, smmirror.com
