Man Faces Jail Term For Stealing A Spoon From Walmart To Eat Cereal
A Florida man has been charged with a felony after he stole a spoon from his local Walmart store, meaning he could spend years in jail for the petty theft. Police have applied the more serious charge because 46-year-old Gregg Lerner already has two prior convictions and has spent time in state prison after being convicted of a previous felony.
According to the police report, Lerner entered the Walmart store in St. Petersburg at around 11pm and proceeded to take a spoon from a shelf. He then tried to leave the store without paying for the $1.60 utensil before security guards apprehended and detained him until police officers arrived.
Officer Michael Romano later stated in the police report that the man had tried to excuse the theft by saying that he needed the spoon so that he could eat his cereal. “The defendant advised that he did steal the spoon, for he needed one to eat his Captain Crunch (cereal) with,” the police report states.
