A couple from The Villages landed in jail after a suspected theft at Walmart at Buffalo Ridge Plaza.
Larry Timothy Smith, 74, and Patricia Joy Smith, 56, of the Village of Fenney, were at the store at about 8 p.m. Friday and in the self-checkout lane when a loss prevention officer noticed they had stacked items but were only scanning the barcode of the item at the bottom of the stack, according to an arrest report from the Sumter County Sheriff’s Office. The loss prevention officer paused the transaction and an associate attempted to help the couple properly scan the merchandise. However, they resumed scanning only the bottom item of the stack. In so doing, they placed unscanned merchandise into their Walmart bags.
The couple attempted to leave the store without paying for all of the merchandise, but were instead escorted to the loss prevention officer’s office. A deputy arrived on the scene and took the couple into custody on charges of theft. They were booked at the Sumter County Detention Center and released after posting $500 bond each.