A pair of habitual offenders from Philadelphia are once again facing charges, after they allegedly conspired to steal a vacuum cleaner from Bed Bath and Beyond in Montgomery Township.
According to the criminal complaint, police were dispatched to the store at 12:47 p.m. on Aug. 20 for a report of a retail theft in progress. A store employee told police that a woman—later identified as 54-year-old Leslie Robinson—had entered the store, placed a vacuum cleaner into a shopping cart and then exited the store without paying, the report states.
The employee then followed Robinson into the parking lot, where she was allegedly loading the vacuum cleaner into a Dodge Caravan driven by 50-year-old Kelly White. As the employee attempted to confront Robinson in the parking lot, both Robinson and White fled the scene in the vehicle, the report states.
A short time later, Cheltenham Police advised that they had had located the suspects and initiated a traffic stop. The employee was then taken to the scene, where they positively identified the suspects as the ones who stole the vacuum, according to the report. Both Robinson and White were then taken into custody.
For Robinson, the incident represents her 20th retail theft arrest, as she has 19 prior convictions in Pennsylvania. It was also the 11th arrest for White, as she has 10 prior retail theft convictions in Pennsylvania.
As a result of the incident, Robinson has been charged with two felony counts of conspiracy – receiving stolen property and one felony count of conspiracy – retail theft. For White, she has been charged with two felony counts of conspiracy – receiving stolen property and one felony count of receiving stolen property.
Robinson and White were arraigned on Aug. 20 by Magisterial District Judge Jay Friedenberg, who set bail at $10,000 unsecured for both women. They were then released from custody. A preliminary hearing for both women is scheduled for Sept. 17 at noon in front of Magisterial District Judge Andrea Duffy.
(Editor's note: All suspects and defendants are innocent until proven guilty. This story was compiled using court records, the affidavit of probable cause, and reflects the point of view of the police. Should the defendant choose to issue a public statement, or is later found not guilty or has the charges dropped, we will update this article accordingly.)
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