A Bryn Mawr woman is facing felony retail theft charges following an incident at the Giant Food Store in Montgomery Township on Feb. 5.
According to the criminal complaint, police responded to the store at 9:25 a.m. for a report of a hit and run in the parking lot of the store. Police spoke with two managers who stated that a female—later identified as 24-year-old Samantha Mendicino—placed $292.43 worth of merchandise into a shopping cart, then exited the store with bagging or paying, the report states.
One of the managers followed Mendicino to her vehicle, a red Nissan Rogue, where she left the cart next to the rear of her vehicle, the report states. The manager then retrieved the shopping cart and a portion of the stolen items, at which point Mendicino reversed, struck a parked vehicle, then fled the scene, according to the complaint.
Police tracked the Nissan’s license plate to Mendicino’s fiancé, who stated that he was told by Mendicino that his vehicle had been struck in a parking lot while she was shopping, the report states. Police then received a call from Mendicino, who stated that she left her shopping cart next to a curb and left because a store employee was following her, according to the report.
Police viewed surveillance footage from the store, which corroborated the managers’ account of events, and police matched the female suspect’s photo to Mendicino’s driver’s license photo, according to the complaint.
Mendicino told police that she was not aware of striking a vehicle in the parking lot, and when asked if she had any prior arrests for retail theft, she reportedly stated that she had one prior arrest, the report states. Police later learned that Mendicino had two prior arrests for retail theft, making this arrest her third, which upgrades the charges to a third-degree felony.
As a result of the investigation, Mendicino has been charged with felony counts of retail theft and receiving stolen property, as well as summary counts of accident involving damage to an unattended vehicle, failure to report an accident and providing false information to police.
Charges were filed against Mendicino on Feb. 25, and she was arraigned by Magisterial District Judge Andrea Duffy, who set bail at $10,000 unsecured. Mendicino was then released from custody, and her next court appearance is a preliminary hearing on March 5 at 10:15 a.m. in front of Judge Duffy.
(Editor’s note: All suspects and defendants are innocent until proven guilty. This story was compiled using court records and 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.)
See also:
Suspect Tased During Incident Involving Knife In Upper Gwynedd, Police Say
Montgomery Township Man Arrested On Felony Weapons, Drug Charges
Man Accused Of Stealing $3,000 In Tools From Employer In Lansdale
Woman Accused Of Stealing $1,100 In Cold Sore, Allergy Medications From Wegmans
Montco Chiropractor Accused Of Credit Card Fraud In Towamencin
