The Orange County Criminal Lawyer Blog
An Idaho man was arrested after being accused of intentionally walking off with a shopping cart that was carrying a woman’s four-week-old child.
The situation unfolded on November 20, when the mother was browsing in the book section at Costco. She temporarily had her shopping cart positioned behind her and within reach. She later told investigators she noticed a man lingering nearby. When she looked back, the cart with her infant strapped into a car seat was missing.
According to investigators, surveillance footage showed the man entering the store shortly before the mother. He took an empty shopping cart, went directly to the book aisle, and appeared to open a book and smell its pages. Footage then showed him grasp the cart holding the infant and pushing it around the mother and down another aisle. The mother found him with the cart and snatched it back. The man followed her and apologized repeatedly before he walked away.
The mother reported the incident to local police five days later. Detectives determined that the membership card used by the suspect belonged to his roommate at Brigham Young University – Idaho Falls, where he was an enrolled student. Officers later traced the vehicle he used to a Marine Corps recruiting office he had visited the same day. Staff said he went to a processing station in Boise for testing but was dismissed for psychological reasons.
When detectives interviewed the man on November 26, he initially claimed nothing had happened at the store. After being reminded of the incident, he reportedly said he was “out of it,” had mistaken the cart for his own, and did not realize the child was inside until the woman came up to him. He reportedly said that he apologized to the woman for an error in judgment and maintained he had no intent to abduct a child.
The man was taken into custody and booked into the Bonneville County Jail. He is facing a preliminary charge of kidnapping in the second degree. He was released a couple of days later, after posting a $5,000 bond.
If you or someone you love is suspected of a domestic violence offense, contact Orange County criminal defense lawyer Staycie R. Sena at (949) 477-8088 for a consultation now.