Police: $26K in stolen baby formula found in suspects’ car
Mar 13, 2023, 11:30 AM
Cans of powdered formula sit on a kitchen counter on May 18, 2022 in Santa Rosa, California. As a nationwide shortage of baby formula continues, single mother and small business owner Keely Aguilar has been struggling to find formula for her daughter Natalyah who has the extremely rare genetic condition known as Bainbridge–Ropers syndrome. Natalyah cannot eat regular food and relies on a special formula to survive. Keely only has a one week supply remaining as she continues to look for formula in other states. (Photo by Justin Sullivan/Getty Images)
(Photo by Justin Sullivan/Getty Images)
CARTERSVILLE, Ga. (AP) — Two men caught shoplifting at a grocery store in Georgia had an estimated $26,000 worth of baby formula in their car, according to police.
Police in Cartersville caught the men walking out of a Publix store north of Atlanta with backpacks filled with cans of formula, news outlets reported. Officers searching their car found 662 more cans of formula inside, police Lt. Greg Sparacio said.
“We believe right now that they have hit several locations, Publix, Kroger, Walmart and more in just over a course of a couple of days,” Sparacio said.
The men were jailed in Bartow County on charges of shoplifting, felony theft by receiving, and contributing to the delinquency of a minor. They had a 16-year-old girl with them when they were arrested Thursday. It was not immediately known if the men had attorneys representing them.
The February 2021 shutdown of a large baby formula factory and recall of many of its products because of contamination concerns helped trigger a nationwide formula shortage. Supplies have largely rebounded more than a year later.
