Shoplifting suspect wanted in N.J. case
A suspected shoplifter was arrested after he was caught huffing cans of whipped cream at a Butler supermarket, city police said.
But the suspect, Trevor Green, 27, no known address, made matters worse for himself Saturday afternoon when he tussled with employees at Friedman's on West Brady Street.
Police later learned that Green and a Colorado woman who was with him were both wanted by authorities in New Jersey.
He and Rachel E. Topping, 32, of Salida, Colo., are both being held in the Butler County Prison on six-figure bail.
Police were called to the store about 12:05 p.m., according to court documents, after a store manager noticed Green walking around inhaling the nitrous oxide from three Reddi-whip canisters.
But when the manager tried to detain him, the defendant pulled away. A second employee intervened and a scuffle ensued, police said, with the trio ending up wrestling on the floor.
Police got there and searched Green, who was found with narcotic painkillers and anti-anxiety medication for which he did not have prescriptions.
With the defendant, officers said, was Topping. She and Green were found to be wanted by police in Mahwah, N.J., who advised city police they planned to seek the pair's extradition.
Because Green used force during the alleged crime at Friedman's, he is charged with robbery as well as possession of a controlled substance.
He and Topping are also charged with arrest before requisition, meaning they are both fugitives from justice, for their out-of-state warrants.District Judge Wayne Seibel arraigned the defendants and remanded Green and Topping on $125,000 and $100,000 bail, respectively.The charges in New Jersey stem from a traffic stop Aug. 17 on Interstate 287 in Mahwah. Police said they suspected drugs were in the couple's car. But they denied police their consent to search the vehicle.Officers impounded the car and took the suspects to a motel while police waited for a search warrant to look through the vehicle, Detective Eric Larsen said Monday.The search turned up crystal meth, cocaine, ecstasy, prescription pain pills, Xanax, marijuana, drug paraphernalia, a machete and $2,000 in cash, according to a police report.But when police returned to the hotel, Larsen said, the defendants were gone. Warrants were subsequently issued for a number of drug and weapons charges.
