You would think that a serial retail thief would be on the lookout to see whether there’s a cop or a patrol vehicle at the place he’s about to steal from. But one man in Florida failed to do that when he tried to swipe thousands of dollars in trading cards from a Target and leave the store unnoticed. Unfortunately for him, a deputy was already inside and had called for backup well before he attempted to flee.
Man had a female accomplice waiting in a getaway car
On September 21, a deputy inside a Target in Palm Coast was alerted by the store’s loss prevention officer of a suspicious man, later identified as 27-year-old Andrew Simmons, who was known for stealing from other Target locations, according to a statement from the Flagler County Sheriff’s Office.
The deputy was in the middle of investigating a stolen bicycle when the known shoplifter entered the store. Simmons had a track record of going into a Target, grabbing a basket, placing trading cards inside, and then exiting the store through a fire exit. Meanwhile, his female accomplice, 35-year-old Madeline Whaley, would be waiting outside in a getaway vehicle, specifically a black sedan, to help Simmons escape.
The criminal duo used the same retail theft strategy for this heist, but they made several fatal mistakes. Not only did they fail to notice the cop inside the Target, but an employee had observed Simmons getting out of a sedan, going into the store, grabbing boxes of sports trading cards, covering them with a lid, and walking out. By then, deputies were already on the case and had caught the thief red-handed.
Sheriff Rick Staly said that the pair had the misfortune of being in the wrong place at the wrong time: “These two have apparently tried the same exact scheme multiple times in other areas and gotten away with it, but they’re 0-for-1 in Flagler County. They picked the wrong store in the wrong county at the wrong time, as unfortunately for them, deputies were literally waiting for them in the parking lot.”
Deputies find several drugs inside the vehicle
When deputies approached Simmons, he knew he had been caught and dropped the container, which had 98 packs worth over $2,500, on the ground. He then ran toward the sedan with Whaley waiting inside. But the deputies executed a high-risk takedown and took both the man and the woman into custody.
The cops then searched the vehicle, where they found more evidence to charge them with. Not only did they observe crumpled tinfoil with burnt residue near the center console, but they uncovered fentanyl, methamphetamine, and a glass pipe with narcotics residue. A backpack in the vehicle hid a handgun inside that belonged to Whaley, but the firearm had been reported stolen in Jacksonville.
The deputies discovered that Simmons was a fugitive. He had four out-of-county arrest warrants, one in St. Johns County for failing to appear and three in Clay County for grand theft. He had previously been arrested for grand theft, petit theft, and possession of a Schedule II substance. His accomplice was a convicted felon previously arrested for driving with a suspended license, trespassing, possession of fentanyl, and failure to appear.
Simmons was arrested and charged, in addition to his four warrants, with grand theft, possession of fentanyl, possession of methamphetamine, and possession of drug paraphernalia. Whaley was charged for accessory after the fact, use of a firearm during the commission of a felony, grand theft of a firearm, possession of a weapon by a convicted felon, possession of fentanyl, possession of methamphetamine, and possession of drug paraphernalia.
Both Simmons and Whaley were booked at the Sheriff Perry Hall Inmate Detention Facility. While Whaley is being held on a $25,000 bond, Simmons is being held without bond.
