Crime & Safety
Police: Man Threatens Security Guard Over Stolen T-Shirts
Spokesman: Man used shopping bag laced with foil to beat store security system.
A 40-year-old Washington, D.C., man has been accused of threatening a mall security guard with a pocketknife while attempting to steal 10 T-shirts over the weekend.
Lonnell Andre Buford has been arrested and charged with robbery and possession of burglarious tools. He remained in jail under a $2,500 bond late Tuesday, according to the Arlington County Sheriff's Office.
At about 7:45 p.m. Saturday, Buford attempted to steal 10 T-shirts from a store in the Pentagon City mall, according to information police released this week.
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Buford brought a shopping bag from another store — lined with aluminum foil in order to get past the store's security system — to put the shirts in, police spokesman Dustin Sternbeck said.
Sternbeck would not name the store.
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A loss prevention officer, who was unarmed, saw Buford and attempted to stop him, Sternbeck said. Buford ran, and the security guard followed. The two confronted one another in a nearby hallway, at which point Buford threatened the loss prevention officer with a pocketknife, Sternbeck said.
Buford continued to run, but by then police had been notified, Sternbeck said.
He was soon taken into custody without incident in a parking garage near the mall.
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