A suspected shoplifter knocked a Belk employee to the ground while trying to flee the store at La Plaza Grande in The Villages.
Christopher Wayne Johnson, 28, of Lady Lake entered the store early Saturday afternoon, selected four items of men’s clothing and entered a fitting room, according to an arrest report from the Lady Lake Police Department. He left the fitting room with only one of the items visible and it was later discovered he had concealed a sweater, shirt and pair of shorts in his pants, the report said. He left the store without paying for the merchandise.
He spent only nine minutes in the store, the report noted.
A Belk loss prevention officer confronted Johnson, who tried to flee on a bicycle. When the loss prevention officer removed Johnson from the bicycle, he tried to flee on foot. Johnson battled the Belk employee and they were both knocked to the ground. The Belk employee suffered minor abrasions on his elbow.
He held Johnson down until police officers arrived on the scene. Johnson later admitted to police he was “stupid for shoplifting.”
He was arrested on charges of retail theft and resisting a merchant. He was booked at the Lake County Jail and released after posting $1,500 bond.
