Police caught suspects leaving Wal-Mart

NORTH PORT -- Working as a team, three men and one woman walked into the North Port Wal-Mart and took 66 bottles of alcohol, police reported Thursday.

North Port Police arrested Thomas Wayne Taylor, 40, of St. Petersburg, Audrey M. Bell, 37, of St. Petersburg, Jeff Anthony McGee, 44, of St. Petersburg, and Jean Nery Moreau, 43, of Gibsonton. The four were charged with grand theft for allegedly stealing 66 bottles of vodka, cognac, gin, whiskey and Scotch, worth $2,155.45.

According to North Port Police reports:

Wal-Mart's security manager Timothy Spates said the four came into the store Nov. 22 and began to select bottles of alcohol from the shelves.

Spates said the four placed the bottles in their clothing, and walked out of the store. They came back many times, placing bottles of alcohol under their clothing and leaving the store.

Spates said the four never paid for the alcohol.

Spates called the police and told them the four adults left in a red Ford with gold on the bottom of it.

Officer Jeff Pasler stopped the vehicle on U.S. 41 while on his way to Wal-Mart.

Officer Scott Smith arrived and said he saw many bottles of alcohol on the floor of the vehicle. He did an inventory of the bottles and photographed them. Spates showed up and reportedly identified the four people as the ones who took the bottles.

Smith and Spates went back to Wal-Mart, where Spates completed a store inventory of the liquor store. The items Smith found in the red Ford matched Spates' inventory list of missing bottles.

The list of bottles taken includes 26 bottles of Grey Goose Vodka; two bottles of Belvedere Vodka; six bottles of Absolut Vodka; 12 bottles of Hennessey Cognac; four bottles of Tanqueray Gin; five bottles of Crown Royal whiskey; two bottles of Armadace Vodka; three bottles of Chivas Regal whiskey; two bottles of Level Vodka; one bottle of Jack Daniels whiskey; one bottle of Gilbey's gin; and two bottles of Dewar's Scotch.

Spates turned over to police a surveillance tape of the theft, and police returned the bottles back to Wal-Mart.

Taylor, Bell, McGee, and Moreau were each released on a $1,000 bond. Taylor was also wanted for violation of probation in Pinellas County, and was released on his own recognizance.

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