Accused thief asks for sale price to avoid felony

NILES

A Youngstown man charged with theft at the Eastwood Mall Sears store was hoping for a “bargain” when police were adding up the value of the coats he was accused of stealing.

Michael H. Tomlin, 31, of Wellington Avenue, is accused of grabbing two armfuls of coats Wednesday afternoon and running toward the front exit. He was detained by loss-prevention personnel when Niles police arrived. As store personnel added up the price of the merchandise, it began to get close to $1,000, the threshold for a charge being elevated to a felony.

That caused Tomlin to argue — apparently in hopes the charge would be dropped to a misdemeanor — that the sale price of the coats should be used, Niles police said on their Facebook page. Acting Judge Daniel Thomas set a personal recognizance bond of $2,500 during Tomlin’s arraignment last week to the felony charge.