A sharp-eyed manager helped law enforcement nab a suspected Chef Boyardee thief at a gas station in The Villages.
Sumter County sheriff’s deputies were called at about 10 a.m. Wednesday to Clark’s Pump ’N Shop at Lake Deaton Plaza after a manager identified 41-year-old Edward Merced Jr. of Ocala who was captured on surveillance that day stealing a can of Chef Boyardee ravioli and two egg rolls from the store, according to an arrest report. The clerk recognized Merced who had been captured April 29 on surveillance taking Spree candy and leaving the store without paying for it.
Merced had been wearing a shirt on Wednesday which identified his place of employment. The Pump ’N Shop manager contacted the employer and requested that Merced return to the store. He was in the parking lot when deputies arrived.
Merced was arrested on two counts of retail theft. He was also wanted on an Orange County warrant. He was booked at the Sumter County Detention Center on $5,000 bond.