Police Reports: This One's In the Bag for Mayfair Security

What a drag.

A would-be thief tried to steal so much stuff he couldn't carry it all out of the store. That kind of drew attention to him, as it had so many times before.

At 1:48 p.m. last Tuesday, a 32-year-old Milwaukee man was arrested for retail theft and possession of drug paraphernalia after he tried to steal 33 items worth $1,331 retail value from at .

He filled up a large bag with so many articles he had to actually drag it to the door where, of course, he was stopped.

The man was found to have 21 prior adult arrests for retail theft. Police found a crack pipe in his pocket, and the man admitted he is an addict. Because of his record and the amount he attempted to steal, he was sent to jail.

In other recent incidents:

Thursday

A Brookfield woman reported that between 5:15 and 6:30 p.m., while she was at the , 2420 N. 124^th St., someone stole the rear license plate off her car.

A 25-year-old Waukesha woman who said she wanted to turn her life around called police Wednesday and arranged to turn herself in Thursday for a retail theft she had committed in December, as well as for a warrant through the Kenosha Police Department for retail theft. On Dec. 22, she was seen on video surveillance footage in the process of stealing six Wii game controllers from , 3900 N. 124^th St., and recognized by store security as a known suspect in a number of other similar thefts from Target stores in the area. Police were able to contact her by phone two days later, and she admitted the thefts. She agreed to come to the police station but never showed up. This time, she was cited for the Target theft and sent to the Milwaukee County Criminal Justice Facility at the request of Kenosha Joint Services.

At 7 a.m., a 42-yer-old West Allis man was arrested for continually sending harassing texts and emails and making phone calls to a Wauwatosa woman who has principal custody of their 14-year-old daughter. He tried to deny the allegations, but police had been listening in on speaker phone when he called her while they were interviewing her about her complaint.

Last Tuesday

At 3:28 p.m., a 54-year-old Milwaukee woman was arrested for retail theft at , 8616 W. North Ave., after she tried to steal a number of items from the deli section. The woman became emotional when talking to police and said she was stealing to eat because she had lost her job and was getting only $26 a week in food stamps.

May 21

At 6:12 p.m., a 45-year-old Milwaukee man was arrested for possession of stolen property, criminal trespassing and as a fugitive after he was seen stealing items from several stores at Mayfair Mall. A police officer saw him get on a county bus and pulled it over in the 9400 block of West North Avenue. He had nearly $550 worth of merchandise from half a dozen different shops. He had been banned from the mall since 2009 for theft and still had a warrant outstanding from that incident.

At 3:12 p.m., two Milwaukee men, 40 and 21 years old, were arrested for retail theft after they were seen trying to steal $131 worth of merchandise from , 3201 N. Mayfair Rd. One of the suspects was detained at the store by security, but the other got away and was arrested by Wauwatosa police after they spotted him North 103^rd and West Burleigh streets.

A 17-year-old Milwaukee girl was cited for habitual truancy from after being absent all or part of 27 days this semester.