A New Castle woman was arrested Tuesday night after an apparent shoplifting spree stores in north Wilmington. She is also facing charges of assaulting an employee and a man trying to halt her flight from the area.
According to State Police, at about 6:30 p.m. a 33-year-old Sears loss-prevention employee was performing routine video surveillance in the store and saw a female, later identified as Kenyetta Reed, 21, of New Castle, concealing merchandise.
When Reed left the store, employee confronted her, identifying himself and asking Reed to return to the store.
Instead, Reed ran through the parking lot, but was caught by the employee. A struggled ensued, during and Reed reportedly bit the employee several times.
A 48-year-old woman from Wilmington who was driving by witnessed the struggle, and attempted to intervene. When she exited her vehicle, Reed broke free from the Sears employee and entered the vehicle.
She tried to drive away, but the vehicle’s owner, her husband, and the Sears employee were able to prevent Reed from putting the vehicle in gear.
After kicking the vehicle’s owner in her chest several times and attempting to bite the Sears employee several more times, Reed was pulled from the vehicle and restrained until troopers arrived.
Reed was found to have stolen merchandise from Sears and three other stores in her possession. The Sears employee was treated at a local hospital for his bite wounds and released. The trooper making the arrest also recognized Reed from an earlier incident.
That incident occurred on February 3, 2013, at The Sports Authority, 1100 Rocky Run Parkway, in Wilmington. At 4:15 p.m. a Sports Authority loss-prevention employee saw Reed put on a pair of boots and walk out of the store.
When the employee confronted Reed, she tried to flee. Reed allegedly stabbed his hand several times with car keys, and bit the employee, eventually breaking free. She then entered a vehicle and drove away.
Reed was arraigned on two counts of robbery first degree, two counts of assault second degree, carjacking second degree, offensive touching with saliva, shoplifting under $1,500, criminal impersonation, offensive touching, conspiracy third degree, and driving with a suspended license. She was committed to Baylor Women’s Correctional Institute on $137,000 cash bail.
