Candy Bar Bandit Carrying Another Bag of Goodies

Once again, a Milwaukee man all too familiar to Wauwatosa police as "the candy bar bandit" has been taken into custody, but the curious circumstances of his arrest allowed only a criminal charge of trespassing this time.

Larry Al Green, 27, was charged Sunday in Milwaukee County Circuit Court with criminal trespass to a dwelling, punishable by up to nine months in jail.

But Green's court record shows that he could, eventually, be looking at a lot longer than that as his many court cases wend their way forward.

According to police reports and a criminal complaint:

At 12:51 a.m. Friday, Green was arrested for trespassing and on a fugitive warrant after a patrol officer spotted him carrying a bulging shopping bag in the 2300 block of North 62^nd Street a little after midnight.

Green saw the officer, too, looked furtive and quickened his pace toward the next corner. The officer decided to stop him for a field interrogation, but lost sight of him.

A woman walking her dog told him she’d just seen a suspicious character of the same description running through someone’s driveway.

As more officers converged, the first officer spotlighted Green standing in an open garage. He pulled over to the curb, but by the time he got to the garage, Green was gone again.

The officer circled the residence – and found Green around the other side, urinating on the side of the house.

Officers who responded immediately recognized Green as a frequent customer of the Wauwatosa Police Department, known from numerous arrests as a candy bar thief.

Indeed, the shopping bag found next to Green was loaded with them. Police could not determine where they came from, though, and Green wouldn't say. In the end, it was only the homeowner’s willingness to prosecute a trespassing complaint that brought any fresh charges.

However, Green was wanted by the Milwaukee County Sheriff’s Department for retail theft and was sent to the County Jail.

A review of Green's court record shows that he has pages of arrests and convictions and eight current, open cases of theft dating just to December.

Green's modus operandi from previous reports has been to walk into gas stations and convenience store and to grab and go with large boxes of candy bars. He doesn't stop on command.

An example from an Oct. 23 Patch blotter item about an Oct. 17 incident:

"At about 10 a.m., a 27-year-old Milwaukee man was arrested for theft nine blocks east of the Speedway gas station at 6804 W. North Ave., where he had reportedly been seen stealing candy. Police searched him and found a large plastic bag filled with $20.36 worth of candy bars and hard candies."

And another from Dec. 12:

"At 1:09 p.m., the manager of Speedway, 6804 W. North Ave., reported that she had noticed two missing boxes of candy and, upon reviewing video from Tuesday, saw that they had been stolen by a black man she thought to be about 28 to 38 years old, 6-feet to 6-feet 2-inches tall, weighing 170 to 200 pounds and wearing a black parka with a fur-lined collar. Taken in the theft were a box containing 36 bags of Skittles worth $64.44 and a box of 24 bars of Twix worth $42.96. The same man had been seen there stealing candy on Dec. 2."

And another from Feb. 18:

"At 11:47 a.m., a 27-year-old Milwaukee man was arrested for theft from the Walgreens at 6600 W. State St. after he was seen stuffing candy bars in his pockets before running out of the store. Police tracked him down at Import Auto Repair, 6210 W. State, where he was found to have 39 stolen candy bars on him worth $68.72. He was also found to have three open cases of theft pending and so was also arrested for bail-jumping and sent to the County Jail."

Some have dubbed Green "the sweet-toothed thief" and noted his soft spot for Twix, Skittles and Snickers, but upon at least one arrest, he told officers he steals to sell those preferred brands to other convenience store owners in the central city for cents on the dollar.