On April 24 in the evening, Officer Scott Fanjoy responded to Walmart for a report of a shoplifter.
According to Fanjoy's report, he met up with Steve Farrar, the store's assistant manager. Farrar told him that he suspected a man and woman were in question. The store's loss prevention associate, Eric McGrath, was following the man, who was later identified as Jeffrey Schrempf, 30, of Nottingham, Fanjoy wrote.
Through radio contact, McGrath told Farrar that Schrempf was in the boys clothing section stuffing items into Walmart bags, Fanjoy wrote. Fanjoy asked if anyone knew where the woman went. Farrar said that he didn't and that the two had split up, Fanjoy wrote.
Sgt. James Berry and Officer Katherine Marcos arrived on scene. Berry watched the grocery store entrance, and Marcos watched the merchandise entrance. Fanjoy obtained descriptions of the two subjects. Schrempf was described as a white male in his 20s to 30s wearing a light gray baseball cap and dark gray pants. The woman was also in her 20s to 30s with frizzy hair and dark colored shirt and was walking around with a toddler, Fanjoy wrote. Fanjoy gave these descriptions to Berry and Marcos.
Farrar told Fanjoy that Schrempf was walking toward the grocery store entrance and his new description included a blue baseball cap with a blue and red striped shirt. “I asked Farrar if this was the same person. He said yes (and that Schrempf) obtained a new hat while inside and took his jacket off,” Fanjoy wrote. “I then let Berry know that the man was going to be exiting on his side of the store and gave him the new description.”
Farrar and Fanjoy walked outside and met Schrempf at the grocery entrance, the report said. Fanjoy noted that Schrempf's shopping cart was full of Walmart plastic bags and that he was holding a can of pepper spray. After taking the pepper spray away, Fanjoy asked Schrempf if he paid for the items in his cart. He said yes. Fanjoy then asked if he had a receipt. Schrempf replied that he didn't, but the woman he was with did, Fanjoy wrote.
Fanjoy added that he asked McGrath if Schrempf had paid for the items. McGrath said he had not, and that he'd watched him take the items and then walk straight out of the store.
While searching Schrempf, Berry found a knife and a plastic bag containing yellow pills later identified as Xanax, the report said.
Schrempf was arrested for theft, possession of prescription drugs without a prescription and two counts of breach of bail conditions. A $12,000 cash bail was set and he was due in court on April 26.
