Adorning her ankle monitoring bracelet, 86-year-old Doris Payne allegedly struck again. The notorious, octogenarian Jewel Thief reportedly hit a Walmart on Monday in DeKalb County, GA. She is accused of boosting $86.22 worth of goods from the grocery, electronics, and pharmacy departments.
According to a store employee, Payne didn’t pay for items she is accused of putting in a Walmart shopping bag and in her purse, yet did pay for goods placed in her shopping cart. Payne, however, contends that she put items in a shopping bag and that she thought she told the cashier.
She also said that medicine she had taken “muddled” her mind prior to when she went to Walmart. She told NBC News that the medicine causes her to “forget.”
Based on the police report, a security officer saw Payne pack items from the pharmacy area into her purse and also transfer goods from her cart to a shopping bag and to her purse. The security officer, who was an off-duty cop, and the Walmart employee nailed her as she left the store. The items she allegedly stole were returned to the store.
Police spot electronic, ankle monitoring bracelet after taking accused to jail
She was arrested, charged with theft by shoplifting, and released after she posted bond. When she was taken to jail in Chamblee, GA, police noticed her wearing an electronic monitoring bracelet.
She is on probation for lifting a necklace, valued at $2,000, from the jewelry counter at a Von Maur, a department store, in DeKalb County. She was ordered, by a judge, to keep out of retail stores and to wear the ankle bracelet. Until her arrest on Monday, she was a little more than a week away from removing the ankle monitor and was in compliance with probation, her lawyer said.
Drew Findling is Payne’s attorney and, as he pointed out, this case differs greatly from all of her past cases, which entailed high-end jewelry. He said he needs to see the surveillance video to “see” what occurred.
Accused Walmart thief notorious for stealing jewelry for six decades
“The Life and Crimes of Doris Payne” is a 2013 Netflix documentary about her exploits as a jewelry bandit extending six decades.
Allegedly stealing “necessities” from Walmart is far from any thefts attributed to Payne. According to Findling, it doesn’t “make sense.” He noted that Payne’s most recent alleged theft does not “fit” into prior acts – no earrings, no pendant, and no brooch. He wants to see the video surveillance captured to see whether it is “forgetfulness.” Payne stated that she has a money card, which has a $7,000 balance.
Findling said Payne could possibly face prison as an outcome of the Walmart incident and that would be “tragic.” He wants to get “things cleared up.”
Authorities assert that Payne, who has been in prison a number of times, has used 22 aliases throughout her decades-long term as a jewelry thief.
In the 1970s, a jewelry industry trading group, sent out warnings about her. Since 1992, she has had encounters with law enforcement in four states.
Gretchen Von Helms, a California attorney who has represented Payne, said her former client’s diminutive appearance and her age betray her “smarts.” She also said Payne is a wonderful person with “a lot of fun stories, aside from her “activities.”
