A shopper left a Florida Publix without paying, cops say. She was packing pepper spray

Madeleine Marr
·1 min read
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A Publix shopper was arrested more than a week after she was accused of pepper-spraying an employee in Southwest Florida.

Around 10:30 a.m. May 3, a woman was caught on surveillance video walking out of the supermarket without paying for a cart full of items, then attacking the employee who tried to stop the crime in the parking lot, according to Fort Myers police.

Surveillance video shows the struggle between the two people outside the supermarket and then the suspect getting into her silver SUV and driving away with the victim’s cellphone that she reportedly ripped from the worker’s back pocket.

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Despite being sprayed with the noxious substance, the employee was able to retrieve the merchandise. The victim has recovered, Fort Myers police spokesperson Kristin Capuzzi told the Miami Herald on Monday.

A Friday Facebook post by the department says that through SWFL Crime Stoppers, tips and a “thorough investigation,” detectives identified Jazmin Nazario, 28, as the suspect.

Nazario was arrested on May 11, facing charges of robbery with a weapon and larceny.