Woman Arrested for Alleged Theft at Target

A Bellefonte woman was arrested Wednesday on felony theft charges after allegedly stealing more than $500 worth of merchandise from Target.

Ashley Nicole Thompson, 30, was charged with retail theft, a third-degree felony, and a misdemeanor count of receiving stolen property. She was arraigned before District Judge Allen Sinclair, who set bail at $2,000 unsecured.

Patton Township Police allege that Thompson entered the Colonnade Boulevard store with a man and retrieved a Target shopping bag which she proceeded to fill with items totaling $223.99 from the store. She allegedly then took the items to the customer service desk and receive store credit for them, using the man’s identification to make the returns.

Thompson and the man then continued to shop in the store, police say. They allegedly picked up children’s backpacks and used them to conceal ‘several articles of clothing, electronics, cosmetics and office supplies inside of them,’ according to the criminal complaint. They then allegedly placed other items in a cart and paid for those along with the backpacks, but not the items inside the backpacks, at a self-scan checkout. They allegedly then left the store without paying for the items in the backpacks, which totaled $295.41.

Police and a store employee stopped Thompson and the man on the sidewalk outside of the store and escorted them into an office. Thompson has previously pled guilty to retail theft charges in 2010 and May of this year, according to court records. Police say the man who was with her did not have any prior retail theft convictions.

Thompson’s preliminary hearing is scheduled for Aug. 31.