Three South Carolina women were arrested on felony shoplifting charges Tuesday after authorities claimed they left Athens, but were apprehended in Walton County after an alert was issued for their vehicle.
Athens-Clarke police freed all the suspects on bond from Athens jail on Wednesday, but they are also under investigation for retail thefts in Oconee County that happened before the suspected theft at Academy Sports & Outdoors.
Just after 6 p.m. on Tuesday, police received a notification that the suspects were leaving the Sports Academy parking area off Atlanta Highway.
The officer received the automobile’s tag number and inspected the FLOCK camera system, revealing that Oconee County had videotaped their car approximately an hour earlier. After dispatching the tag information to neighboring counties, Walton County deputies conducted a traffic stop and arrested all three ladies.
Police said that they caught the residents of Greenville, South Carolina, ages 23, 28, and 26, in possession of more than $1,000 in merchandise, the majority of which was Sports Academy gear.
Walton County detained the car due to its contents until they could secure a search warrant to retrieve the stolen property, according to police.
On Thursday, Oconee County Sheriff’s Capt. Vic Green said that deputies would be present when the automobile is searched to see whether any of the stuff was stolen from Oconee County establishments, which could result in extra charges.
According to the officer’s report, Athens-Clarke police investigators will look into the situation further.
