Woman faces 14 theft charges after bid to disguise herself in clothes pulled from store rack

Police have charged a woman after she tried to disguise herself in stolen goods while making a getaway.

A woman has been charged after trying to smuggle stolen goods out of a west Auckland store and attempting to disguise herself in clothing she had not paid for.

Sergeant Rachael England said the woman was confronted by the staff of a Henderson sports store after trying to make off with $200 worth of baseball caps yesterday afternoon.

“The woman stormed off after abusing the staff, and attempted to enter more stores in the area, whose staff noticed her unusual behaviour and challenged her.”

England said the woman tried to avoid detection at another store by pulling an outfit off the rack and putting it on.

She also repositioned barcodes on two items to make them appear cheaper than they were.

“At the same time, the Henderson Beat Team was closing the net and tracked her to the store, where they monitored her movements and made the arrest as she attempted to leave,” England said.

England said members of the public applauded the beat team as they made the arrest.

When police searched the woman, more items she had not paid for were found with utensils for using meth.

“Retail theft isn’t a victimless crime, and we want to thank the retailers who called us so promptly,” England said.

The woman was due to appear in the Waitākere District Court on January 14 charged with theft, obtains by deception, and possession of utensils for meth.

Police asked anyone who saw shoplifting or suspicious behaviour to call 111 while it was happening.