Florida Woman Accused of Shoplifting Climbs Into Big Lots Ceiling to Avoid Police

Bill Pan
By Bill Pan
October 6, 2019US News
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Florida Woman Accused of Shoplifting Climbs Into Big Lots Ceiling to Avoid Police
A mug shot of Kristina Perkins, who faces multiple charges after climbing into the ceiling of the Big Lots store to avoid arrest. (Charlotte County Sheriff’s Office)

A Florida woman suspected of shoplifting climbed up into the ceiling of a Big Lots store and remained there for about six hours to avoid arrest, local police said.

Charlotte County Sheriff’s Office said in a statement that police officers were called to the Big Lots store in Port Charlotte at around 7:30 p.m. on Oct. 3 after the store’s manager reported an alleged shoplifting. According to the manager, a woman had gone into the women’s restroom with a shopping cart full of merchandise and used several garbage cans in an attempt to barricade the door. The manager eventually entered the restroom and saw missing tiles from the ceiling. The woman, however, was nowhere to be found.

Police officers arrived at the scene and determined the woman was hiding in the ceiling area after they removed some ceiling tiles in the store. The women ignored commands to come down and kept moving to other areas in the ceiling space.  The police had to evacuate the entire store for fear she might fall through the ceiling and hurt other customers.

County firefighters, equipped with ladders and a thermal imaging system searched the store’s ceiling for several hours. They found the woman’s purse, which contained three syringes and a spoon with a white residue that tested positive for Morphine.

The search was finally called off at 12:20 a.m. the next day. At 1:40 a.m. the woman was spotted exiting the ceiling and climbing down a stack of shelves by an officer who remained in the store. She was arrested as soon as she made it to the floor.

The woman was identified as 37-year-old Kristina Perkins, of North Fort Myers. She was arrested and charged with felony criminal mischief, theft, possession of drug paraphernalia, resisting a merchant and resisting law enforcement without violence.

Big Lots reported significant damage to its ceiling, duct work, and drywall due of the incident, police said. The store will be closed until repairs are completed.

Florida Woman’s Tantrum Over Cigarette Results in Lifetime Disney Ban

A Florida woman tried to assault a taxi driver and then appeared to attack a deputy sheriff outside Hollywood Studios because she could not get a cigarette. She is facing criminal charges and a lifetime ban from Disney World.

53-year-old Ellen McMillion, of Brandon, was arrested Sept. 5 and charged with third-degree felony battery on a law enforcement officer and one misdemeanor count of disorderly intoxication, reported Orlando Sentinel, citing court records.

She is now banned from all Walt Disney World properties for life.” A Disney spokeswoman said in a statement released to the news outlet, adding they “have no tolerance for violence,” at the park.

A police arrest affidavit said the incident started around 9 p.m. when McMillion asked a taxi driver for a cigarette at the front of the park. She became upset when the driver, who doesn’t smoke, told her he did not have any cigarettes. She allegedly “raised her arm above her head” and attempted to slap him. The driver blocked her multiple attacks.

A deputy working at Hollywood Studios noticed McMillion yelling and trying to slap the taxi driver in the parking lot. A security guard who feared the woman might pose a threat to other customers also observed her behavior, the report said.

Deputies said that when they approached McMillion, she smelled of alcohol and was slurring her words, reported Spectrum News. She told authorities multiple times that she was drunk.  When the deputy asked to see her ID, she threw her purse on the ground and said, “Here.”

McMillion was “yelling profanities” as multiple adults and children walked by the front of the park, according to the affidavit. Police said she also kicked one of the deputies in the leg “at least twice” as they put her in the patrol car.

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