Florida shoplifting suspect claiming to play game at Walmart arrested for drug trafficking: ‘It's really fun'
PALM COAST, Fla. - A Florida sheriff says a woman who claimed to be playing a shoplifting game at a Walmart lost to his deputies who discovered marijuana and methamphetamine among stolen items inside a car connected to a retail theft case.
According to the Flagler County Sheriff’s Office, deputies were called to the Walmart in Palm Coast to investigate a potential larceny case.
Deputies say a woman, later identified as Amber McCann, 30, of Sanford, Florida, had reportedly taken items from Walmart without paying for them. The person reporting the theft said McCann put the stolen items into a vehicle and ran away when she noticed someone was watching her.
The store’s loss prevention officer said she stole about $1,030 worth of merchandise.
When deputies questioned Amber McCann about the stolen items she said she dumped them inside a random vehicle along with her purse and identification. Image is courtesy of the Flagler County Sheriff's Office.
Investigators say they found the vehicle in question with the stolen items in the backseat. They also claimed to see McCann walking toward the store.
When questioned, investigators say McCann admitted to taking a loaded cart full of stolen items to a car, but claimed it was a random vehicle she found. She also told detectives she placed her purse inside the random vehicle when she saw deputies arriving.
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McCann went on to tell deputies that she was playing a game called "21" where someone grabs as much merchandise from a store and walks out without paying for the items while trying not to get caught.
Deputies found the stolen merchandise inside a vehicle in the parking lot that also had marijuana and methamphetamine inside. Image is courtesy of the Flagler County Sheriff's Office.
Once McCann was secured by deputies, she changed her story and said the car was not a random vehicle. Instead, she said it was a rental car that belonged to her boyfriend. In bodycam video, McCann can be heard telling deputies that her boyfriend doesn't know that she steals. She added that her boyfriend is older than her and wouldn’t be playing shoplifting games.
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While removing the stolen merchandise, deputies said they smelled a clear and distinct odor of marijuana emanating from within the vehicle.
Investigators found a partially burnt marijuana cigarette in the center console. According to FCSO, additional baggies containing marijuana, along with a digital scale, hashish, a glass pipe with burnt residue, and empty baggies were found in the trunk of the vehicle.
Deputies say when they were searching the vehicle connected to the Walmart theft they found drugs inside. Image is courtesy of the Flagler County Sheriff's Office.
They also said they found a locked bag that contained two plastic baggies containing a clear, crystal-like substance, which tested positive for methamphetamine, and another baggie containing two yellow tablets identified as alprazolam, which is a schedule IV-controlled substance.
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Inside a locked safe, deputies said they located various 1-ounce silver bars and rounds, copper bars, and a 1-gram platinum bar.
In total, deputies recovered four bags containing methamphetamine, which weighed a combined 62 grams, according to FCSO.
Amber McCann mugshot courtesy of the Flagler County Sheriff's Office.
"If she really thought she was playing a shoplifting game, she lost to our deputies and observant citizens," said Sheriff Rick Staly. "Yet again, a ‘see something, say something’ caller directly contributed to the arrest of a thief and drug trafficker. Another out-of-town resident ‘just stealing material things’ from a big box store learned the hard way we enforce the laws in Flagler County and it’s illegal to steal. She may have skipped the checkout lane at Walmart, but she went through the express check-in at the Green Roof Inn with a free set of designer bracelets—aka handcuffs."
McCann was charged with grand theft, possession of marijuana, possession of hashish, possession of drug paraphernalia, possession of Alprazolam, and trafficking of methamphetamine.
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