A Georgia woman was arrested for petit theft after leaving Walmart after a failed transaction with the store’s app at self-checkout.
A deputy responded to Walmart, located at 550 U.S. Hwy. 27 in Clermont, regarding a theft complaint around 3:47 p.m. Sunday, according to an arrest report from the Lake County Sheriff’s Office. Prior to arrival, the LCSO comm center advised that a loss prevention officer had an uncooperative person in the office.
Once at the scene, the deputy met with the complainant in the loss prevention office where 27-year-old Quashia Battles was being aggressive and yelling. The deputy asked her to sit down and let him conduct his investigation. The report noted that before he got there, multiple family members were yelling outside of the office. Battles then agreed to calm down and cooperate with the investigation.
The complainant explained that Battles was skipping scanning some merchandise while she watched through the cameras. A female associate approached Battles and told her that she was not scanning items correctly. Battles proceeded to scan all the items and tried using the Walmart app to pay. She placed all the items in plastic bags and did not wait for her receipt, the report said.
Battles then left the store, passing all points of sale. The complainant and another loss prevention officer approached her and stated she needed to go to the loss prevention officer with them. The complainant also called law enforcement to notify them of the situation and filled out an affidavit with intent to prosecute on behalf of Walmart. The total amount of stolen items was worth $107.70, the report said.
The deputy watched the surveillance video which matched the complainant’s statement. When Battles tried to pay with the Chime app, she was using her phone which would take her to the Walmart app payment. She attempted to make the payment, and it downloaded the transaction. It kept loading while she was putting items in bags, leaving and passing all points of sale, the report said.
The deputy next spoke to Battles and read her rights, which she understood and agreed to speak with him. He asked her what happened that day. She stated that she thought she paid for the items. She used her credit card app to pay the Walmart app. The credit card app showed the transaction failed, but she thought it was approved as she left the store, the report said.
Additionally, Battles was on vacation staying at the Summer Bay Resort, located at 126-200 Summer Bay Boulevard. She had no prior criminal history, the report said.
Battles was ultimately arrested on charge of petit theft. She was transported to Lake County Jail without incident and released after posting $1,000 bond.