Published: June 27, 2007 09:01 am      

RPD nets theft arrests

A Berea man police say is connected to several recent Wal-Mart thefts was apprehended Monday with a cart full of would-be stolen groceries at Kroger.

Steve A. Napier, 23, of Neely Street, is charged with four counts of theft by unlawful taking of property valued at more than $300.

Napier was a suspect in three thefts at Wal-Mart that have occurred within the past two weeks, Gregg said.

“We had been looking for him and knew he was going to be back out in that area most of the morning,” RPD Maj. Steve Gregg said. “He never showed up. He actually had switched cars on us.”

A Wal-Mart loss prevention officer had just notified Gregg that Napier allegedly had been at Wal-Mart on Monday morning trying to steal an air conditioner when Gregg said he heard the call that RPD Patrolman Joe Lain apprehended Napier at Kroger.

“He attempted to push a whole buggy full of merchandise out the door,” Gregg said. “They actually had to tackle him. He tried to run on them.”

There was $331.53 worth of merchandise in the cart Napier allegedly pushed out the front door at Kroger, including a toaster, dog food and laundry detergent, Gregg and RPD Detective Eric Long said.

Napier is charged with one count of theft by unlawful taking for the Kroger incident. He also is charged with three counts of theft by unlawful taking for an LCD television set and two E-Machine computers.

“When we pulled up his mug shot at the jail, he had the same Dale Earnhardt shirt on in his mug shot as he did when he stole the TV at Wal-Mart,” Gregg said. “It wasn’t too hard (to identify him).”

Napier is lodged in the Madison County Detention Center. Gregg said Napier admitted to stealing the items to support his Oxycontin habit.

Also Monday, a Richmond woman was charged with stealing more than $11,000 from the Medicine Shoppe in Richmond.

Lisa Renee Perkins, 41, was a clerk at the pharmacy for about three years, Long said. Perkins allegedly had been stealing money a little at a time from January to March 19.

“She was manipulating the deposits,” Long said. “She was taking the insurance checks when they would come in for people’s medication. That’s where she was getting the money.”

The store’s manager noticed the missing money and confronted the store’s employees, Long said.

“She was the major one making the deposits at night,” Long said. “That’s when she was taking it, when she was doing the deposit. When she was confronted by him, she didn’t out and out deny it, but got up and left the room and then never came back.”

The money has not been recovered, but Perkins reportedly said she wanted to pay back the pharmacy, Long said.

“She wanted security,” Long said. “She spent the money on bills. She really didn’t have any specific reason for taking it other than just security.”

Perkins was charged with one count of theft by unlawful taking and cited to appear in court July 3.