Walmart has banned a well-known serial shoplifter from all of its stores in the United States for repeated acts of theft from the company.
Per WREG, Memphis police recently arrested Ashley Cross, 37, after she went to a Walmart store and used a watch barcode battery to price items she had purchased at $1. Authorities said officers made their way to a Walmart store at Whitehaven after receiving a call about a shoplifter/misdemeanor.
Cross and another female were identified as the shoplifting suspects. Police said footage captured Cross accessing a self-checkout machine and scanning all the items she took for $1 with an old watch barcode battery.
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The items Cross was accused of stealing from the store were valued at $137.34, and they included 11 packs of Ramen Noodles, women’s boots, blue jeans, and a T-shirt. She was ultimately arrested and charged with criminal trespass and theft of merchandise less than $1,000.
The multinational retail store has since placed the 37-year-old on the Authorization of Agency list, which means her repeated shoplifting acts have resulted in her being banned from all Walmart stores in the United States.
“We value our customers and associates and want them to have a pleasant shopping experience. Though rare, there are instances when someone is no longer welcome in our stores,” Walmart explained in a statement.
Cross is scheduled to appear in court on February 19. “She knows how to get by, so I think it would be best just to ban her,” a Walmart shopper told WREG. “It don’t make no sense that a person would steal from a Walmart store,” another shopper said.
Authorities also said the other shoplifting suspect similarly accessed the self-checkout machine and scanned all the items she took for $1 with an old watch barcode battery. The items she stole, which included a backpack, two bras, a lash kit, and a car accessory, were valued at $57.86.
Authorities issued that suspect with a misdemeanor citation for theft of property.
