Woman Acts as Deadweight to Avoid Arrest by Canton Police

Canton Township Police arrested three people on charges of first degree retail fraud 6:54 p.m. Jan. 6 at Walmart, 45555 Michigan Avenue, according to a police report.

Officers were dispatched to Walmart on Michigan Avenue for a retail fraud in progress, according to the report. There were two female suspects who had left the store and returned to a blue 2005 Pontiac Aztec, which had been parked near the entrance and where a man was placing merchandise from the store, the report said.

The officer put his vehicle behind the Aztec to stop it from backing away, according to the report, and ordered the driver to exit the vehicle. The woman began to exit but dropped a purple purse onto the parking lot, the report said. The officer ordered her to leave it and continue to exit the vehicle, according to the report, but she refused and got back in the car. 

The officer ordered her again and the woman responded that she had just had a baby, was bleeding and had difficulty getting out of the car, the report said. The officer ordered her to exit and told her she was under arrest, but the woman continued to say she was moving as fast as she could, the report said.

A second officer joined the first in approaching the woman to order her out of the vehicle, according to the report, and she began to shout and cause a disturbance.

The officer grabbed her left arm and directed her out of the vehicle, but once the woman got her feet on the ground she immediately collapsed, the report said. She refused to get up and continued to yell and cause a disturbance, according to the report. 

The officers grabbed her arms but she refused to get up and continued to be a deadweight, the report said. The officers were able to lift her and had to pull her toward the patrol car, according to the report, but she refused to get up and was handcuffed.

A woman with her toddler daughter in her lap was in the backseat of the Aztec, the report said, and she was placed in a patrol car while the investigation continued.

A Walmart official said the women entered the store selecting merchandise and placing it into a shopping cart, according to the report. They passed all points of purchase and left the cart in the produce section near the west doors, the report said, and went outside to the Aztec.  While the Aztec was parked near the entrance one of the women and the man re-entered the store and retrieved the shopping cart with the merchandise, the report said, and the man loaded the merchandise valued at $1,202 into the Aztec.

The woman was transported to St. Joseph Mercy for her unknown medical condition, according to the report, and the other two were taken to the Canton Police Department.  All three had prior retail fraud charges, the report said.

For questions about this crime report, email aysha.jamali@patch.com.