Crime & Safety

Police Blotter: Woman Assaults Pharmacy Employees During Unsuccessful Bid to Steal Cartons of Cigarettes

Here's a roundup of notable police activity in Lawrence Township from May 15 through May 16.

Robbery

Lawrence Township police have identified one of two suspects wanted in connection with a robbery and assault that took place at the CVS Pharmacy in the 1900 block of Brunswick Pike, at the corner of Cherry Tree Lane, on Sunday, May 15, according to Lt. Charles Edgar, spokesman for the township police department.

He said police allege that Melissa Deems, 33, of the 100 block of Aldrich Drive in Falls, Pa., entered the CVS shortly before 7:45 p.m. and went behind the sales counter in an apparent attempt to steal cartons of cigarettes. When she was confronted by store employees, Deems allegedly punched one employee and pushed another, he said.

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Fleeing the pharmacy empty-handed, she got into a silver Hyundai Elantra being driven by a man whose identity police are still trying to determine, Edgar said. He said the vehicle, belonging to a Ewing Township resident, had been reported stolen in Morrisville, Pa.

Police searched the area but were unable to locate the vehicle, he said. The employees who were assaulted – a 22-year-old woman and a 50-year-old woman – were not seriously hurt, he added.

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Detective Todd Caruso is handling the investigation and is working with authorities in Bucks County, Pa., to locate Deems and identify her male accomplice, according to Edgar.

(Update: .)

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Fraud

At 10:33 a.m. on Sunday, May 15, a resident of Merline Avenue called police to report that another woman has been using her social security number, Edgar said. He said the victim made the discovery when she went to a medical appointment and while registering her information with the medical facility was told that there was another patient on file under the victim’s social security number. Officer Shaun Sexton was assigned the investigation.

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Theft

Officer John Glenn is working to identify a man who sped away without paying after receiving $70 worth of gas at the Sunoco service station in the 1700 block of Brunswick Pike (Business Route 1) about 11:40 a.m. on Sunday, May 15, Edgar said. No description of the man was available. He was driving a brown Toyota.

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Shoplifting

A 16-year-old girl from Hamilton Township was arrested about 3:10 p.m. on Sunday, May 15, after she allegedly stole a sterling silver ring worth $60 from the J.C. Penney department store at Quaker Bridge Mall in the 3300 block of Brunswick Pike (Route 1), Edgar said. He said the girl allegedly removed the ring from its packaging, placed it on one of the fingers of her left hand and exited the store without paying. She was followed by a store loss prevention official and detained until Officer Erini Papafilipakis arrived to charge her with shoplifting, he said. 

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Fraud

Officer Adam Kowalczyk was sent to Danielle Court at 9:04 a.m. on Monday, May 16, to investigate after a 69-year-old resident there called police to report that someone had withdrawn $500 from her bank account, possibly using a clone of her debit card to withdraw money from an automated teller machine (ATM), Edgar said. He said the original debit card is still in the woman’s possession.

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Fraud

In a similar case, Officer Shaun Sexton was sent at 12:47 p.m. on Monday, May 16, to investigate the theft of $300 from the bank account of a 44-year-old Avalon Way resident. The woman told police someone had used a clone of her debit card to withdraw money from an ATM in Philadelphia, Edgar said.

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Rescue

At 3:11 p.m. on Monday, May 16, township police officers and firefighters were sent to the Lawrence Township Public Schools administrative offices at 2565 Princeton Pike to assist a 60-year-old school district employee who had gotten her right arm stuck in a copy machine while trying to clear a paper jam in the machine’s inner workings, Edgar said. The woman’s arm was quickly freed and she declined medical attention, he said.

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Drug Investigation

Officers were dispatched to Town Court South at 3:39 p.m. on Monday, May 16, after police received a complaint about a man possibly using drugs in a parked vehicle, Edgar said. He said no one was in the car when officers arrived. Officers located the owner of the Nissan Altima, a woman who said that she had loaned the vehicle to her male cousin.

The cousin was nowhere to be found at the time. A search allegedly uncovered a small amount of marijuana inside the vehicle, according to Edgar, who said Officer Erini Papafilipakis was continuing to investigate the incident.

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Theft

An employee of the Hot Topic store at Quaker Bridge Mall called police at 5:47 p.m. on Monday, May 16, to report that between 3:30 and 4:30 that afternoon someone stole her wallet – which contained credit cards, her driver’s license and other personal items – from her bag, which she had left on the floor behind the sales counter of the store while she was working, Edgar said.

The 20-year-old Princeton resident told police she learned of the crime after someone tried – unsuccessfully – to use her credit card at a local WalMart and she was contacted by her credit card company, he said.

 Anyone with information about any of the above crimes is asked to call Lawrence Township police at (609) 896-1111.

 A copy of Lawrence Township's police dispatch log for Sunday, May 15, through Monday, May 16, 2011, can be viewed from the PDF box above. This log lists all significant calls for service and incidents for which officers filed a written report. Routine administrative assignments are omitted. Some data has been redacted to protect the identity of crime victims.


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