FLAGLER COUNTY, Fla. — A joint investigation by the Flagler County Sheriff's Office and Bunnell Police Department resulted in the arrest of a man and woman Thursday accused of stealing more than $850 in items from a grocery store.
The agencies identified both suspects and located Willie London Jr., 41, and Michele Sofia, 38, in a tent behind a residence on South Church Street in Bunnell. Both were already on felony probation, police said.
On Wednesday, a FCSO media release said a black sedan pulled into the parking lot Winn-Dixie located at 111 Flagler Plaza Drive. Footage showed Sofia walking through the store and placing items in her shopping cart before exiting the store, passing all points of sale without paying. Surveillance camera footage showed Sofia making a large loop around the parking lot before walking to the car and loading it with the items, the sheriff's office said.
The agency said London later entered the store, collecting items in a shopping cart, then abandoning the cart filled with items near a checkout lane. He walked to the black sedan and spoke with the female near the trunk of the SUV next to the car. When the cart had been moved to the customer service desk, Sofia then exited the store with the cart and walked straight to the car, loading the items into the car. The car later returns to pickup London.
Both carts had a value of $857.01, the sheriff's office said.
They were arrested and transported to the Sheriff Perry Hall Inmate Detention Facility. London resisted officers while he was being taken into custody, the sheriff's office said. He was arrested for two counts of violation of probation, obstruction without violence, and retail theft over $750. Sofia was arrested for grand theft $750-$5,000 and violation of probation.
“I guess these thieves thought they were in another state or city, where you can just go in a store and steal what you want. We don’t allow that in Flagler County,” Flagler County Sheriff Rick Staly said in the release. “With their carts full of stolen groceries, they earned themselves a cot at the Green Roof Inn. I commend the outstanding teamwork between the Bunnell Police Department and our deputies for identifying and then finding these thieves and putting them where they belong.”
