Man accused of using store merchandise as weapon during Grange Co-op robbery

Nick Morgan, Mail Tribune, Medford, Ore.
·2 min read

Oct. 25—A California man faces a string of felony charges accusing him of threatening an employee with a handsaw during a robbery of the south Medford Grange Co-op.

Thomas Lee Call, 26, of Fortuna, California, was charged with first-degree robbery, first-degree theft, second-degree burglary and unlawful use of a weapon for allegedly loading up a shopping cart with more than $1,800 in merchandise from the Grange Co-op warehouse, at 2531 S. Pacific Highway in Medford, the afternoon of Oct. 15, according to Jackson County Circuit Court filings.

During the warehouse robbery, Call allegedly pulled an orange handsaw from his cart and used the tool to threaten a store staff member who attempted to grab the cart containing boxes of Carhartt clothing, according to an affidavit filed by the Jackson County Sheriff's Office.

The employee had been roughly a yard away when Call allegedly "feigned as if he was going to strike" the employee. The store employee backed away as the suspect made his way through the retail area with the cart full of merchandise.

Jackson County sheriff's deputies arrested Call Friday on the robbery, burglary, theft and weapon use charges.

Call made his initial court appearance Monday. At the hearing, Circuit Court Judge Laura Cromwell ordered Call not be released early unless he posts 10% bond on bail set at $100,000.

Court records show Call has multiple prior theft and shoplifting cases dating back to February of this year.

He faces counts of third-degree robbery and second-degree theft accusing him of stealing a Medford library patron's car keys and Amazon Kindle Feb. 23, when he pushed a victim to get away; another third-degree robbery charge accusing him of stealing $150 in flashlights from O'Reilly Auto Parts, 1320 Center Drive in Medford, and pushing an employee to get away; a count of first-degree theft accusing him of stealing nearly $1,300 worth of sunglasses July 2 from Stanton Optical in the Northgate Center on Rossanley Drive; and a charge of first-degree forgery accusing him of passing a counterfeit $10 bill Aug. 9 at a Medford market on West Jackson Street.

Call's next court appearance in the Grange Co-op robbery is scheduled for Monday, Oct. 31. He has court appearances scheduled for Nov. 7 in each of his seven other pending criminal cases, court records show.

Reach web editor Nick Morgan at 541-776-4471 or nmorgan@rosebudmedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @MTwebeditor.