A Leesburg man will appear in court next week for attempting to steal shorts and a cooler from Walmart.
An asset protection associate of Walmart, located at 2501 Citrus Blvd., was walking the sales floor when he saw 56-year-old John Richard Pace on an electrical cart selecting merchandise at 2:20 p.m. Saturday, June 6, according to a case report from the Leesburg Police Department.
The associate returned to his office and began watching surveillance cameras, during which he watched Pace pick up a Titan cooler bag from the sporting goods department. He then went to the bicycle aisle and removed the tags from the cooler, the report said.
He proceeded to the men’s clothing department, where he swapped his shorts for a new pair of black Wrangler shorts from a rack. After leaving the electrical cart, he grabbed a push cart, filled it with items from the grocery department and paid for them at a register, the report said.
Pace did not buy the shorts or the cooler bag, so the associate stopped him at the exit. The associate recovered the $43.95 in merchandise, the report said.
Pace was issued a misdemeanor citation for petit theft and released on his own recognizance. He is due in court on June 24.