Macy's Theft: Convicted Shoplifter Sought By Joliet Police

JOLIET, IL — A 46-year-old Crest Hill man, Arlaine Richards, faces two counts of retail theft in connection with a shoplifting crime inside the Macy's department store at the Louis Joliet Mall. This week's criminal complaint states that a Joliet police investigation determined that Richards stole hundreds of dollars of clothes from the Macy's store on Dec. 10.

The complaint also indicates that Richards is eligible for an enhanced sentence because he was convicted of theft in Will County for a 2018 crime.

On Tuesday, Will County Associate Judge Ken Zelazo issued a bench warrant for Richards' arrest and set bail at a steep $80,000 upon Richards' capture.

As of New Year's Eve, Richards was not yet taken into custody. His bench warrant lists his address as being in the apartment units along the 2000 block of Crest Hill's Oakland Avenue.

In September 2019, Joliet Patch reported that the Joliet Police Department had charged Richards, who was living in Joliet at the time, with burglary, attempted armed robbery and attempted robbery. In that case, the criminal complaint stated that Richards was armed with a dangerous weapon, a knife, on Sept. 3 when he tried to take cash from a man "by threatening the imminent use of force, in that he put said knife on the neck of (the victim) and demanded (the man) turn over his money."

In January 2020, Richards pleaded guilty to carrying and possessing a knife with intent. He was sentenced to 288 days in the Will County Jail and given credit for time already served, which was 144 days. He was also fined $549 and given 12 months of conditional discharge, court records show.

As of New Year's Eve, Richards had not been captured by Will County authorities in connection with his Dec. 10 shoplifting charges at Macy's, jail logs show.