Crime & Safety

Man Accused of Burglary at Walmart on Thanksgiving, Runs into Extra Deputies

A man was arrested Thursday and accused of taking merchandise from a Walmart in Redlands, and a woman was arrested at his residence on suspicion of possessing drug paraphernalia, according to the Sheriff's Department.

The suspect, William Henry Lindsay, 29, was at the Walmart store at 2050 W. Redlands Blvd. about 8:30 p.m. Nov. 28, Central Station personnel said in a statement.

Deputies were assigned at the store to assist with law enforcement services.

Lindsay allegedly selected several items, including Nintendo games and a Hewlett Packard lap top computer, and he placed the items in a location where he could return to retrieve them later, deputies said.

"Walmart's security and loss prevention unit watched him as he moved the items out of the store," deputies said. "Store security officers contacted Lindsey outside the store when he went to retrieve the merchandise."

Lindsay then ran through the parking lot, across Redlands Boulevard, to the parking lot of a Panda Express restaurant, Central Station personnel said. Deputies set up a perimeter around the Panda Express parking lot and found Lindsay hiding inside a trash dumpster.

Deputies discovered Lindsay is on felony probation for a grand theft conviction, and he was arrested on suspicion of burglary and possessing stolen property. Deputies went to his residence to do a probation search and arrested Irene Mendoza, 37, on suspicion of possessing a glass pipe, Central Station personnel said.

Lindsay and Mendoza, both identified as Redlands residents, were booked at Central Detention Center in San Bernardino, according to inmate records. Mendoza was cited and released, and Lindsay remained locked up Friday on $25,000 bail.

For Thanksgiving and Black Friday, the Walmart store's management requested the assistance of the Sheriff's Department "to provide a safe environment for the holiday shoppers," Central Station personnel said. Four sheriff's deputies were assigned to the store to kick off the holiday shopping.


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