Paramedics arrived for the pretend-seizure of a 34-year-old suspect who was arrested for shoplifting at Bloomingdale’s in Santa Monica on Friday, March 6.
Officers of the Santa Monica Police Department were called out to Bloomingdale’s at 315 Colorado Avenue at 10 am to investigate a report of theft.
Upon arrival at the store the officers spoke with loss prevention agents who told them that the suspect had entered the store, seized a box of fragrance from the counter and discreetly (though not discreetly enough, it turned out) placed it in a bag that he was carrying and continued to browse other items in the store in a manner that suggested he was an average customer.
A short while later, the suspect then repeated the performance but this time with a pair of sunglasses, again placing them inside his bag.
The loss prevention agents then told the officers that the suspect left the store without paying for the items and it was then that they detained him.
They added that they had returned to the store to await the arrival of the police and that at that time the suspect appeared to suffer from a severe seizure.
They said that they had called paramedics and when the paramedics had arrived the suspect admitted that he had faked the seizure.
The officers arrested the Los Angeles resident, and he was charged with shoplifting. Bail was not granted.
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.
