A Turlock Police Department K-9 helped find the evidence that put a suspected shoplifter behind bars.
The incident began around 6 p.m. Sunday as holiday shoppers were milling about the Kohl’s in Turlock. In the crowd, loss prevention agents happened to spot a woman slip out the doors with her arms loaded down with clothing, jewelry, and electronics.
The agents chased after the woman across an open field. The police report stated the suspect was throwing items as she ran.
The suspect was able to elude the agents but they had a good feeling she was hiding in the nearby McDonald’s on Countryside Drive and phoned the Turlock Police Department.
Officers checked the area and found a woman in Starbucks who matched the description of the suspect. According to the police report, she was acting very nervous when the officers brought in the loss prevention agents. The agents identified the woman as the suspected thief and she was taken into custody.
A K-9 was brought in and used to search the field. The K-9 found some of the suspect’s clothing and the tool used to get security tags off the merchandise.
Alexandra Maddox, 22, was arrested for burglary and theft with prior convictions.