Stow Man Busted For Shoplifting Champagne, Having Crack Pipe

tracked down a champagne shoplifter Dec. 30 and discovered that the man and a female companion both had needles and crack pipes in their possession, resulting in multiple charges.

The incident began when a manager called police at 11:38 a.m. Dec. 30 to report that a Stow man, 29, had left the store without paying for six bottles of champagne valued at $335. Another Stow man, also 29, was waiting outside the store in a vehicle and drove the shoplifter away.

When the vehicle was stopped at 12:10 p.m. on Main Street near in relation to the Giant Eagle theft, police recovered the champagne and charged the two men with misdemeanor theft.

Another passenger in the vehicle, a 55-year-old Stow woman with the same address as the shoplifter, was charged with possession of drug paraphernalia after police saw five needles in plain view. They also found a crack pipe in the woman’s purse.

A search of the vehicle interior revealed a needle and a crack pipe in a compartment on the driver’s side. The champagne shoplifter admitted the items were his, resulting in a misdemeanor charge of possession of drug paraphernalia.

The champagne was returned to Giant Eagle.