Florida Woman Who Owns $960k House, Jailed For Shoplifting
Boca Raton Fla March 28 2021 The owner of a $960,000 home in the Lotus development near Lyons and Clint Moore is accused of shoplifting nearly $1000 worth of lighting from Home Depot in West Boca Raton.
Karen Berger, 44, who is identified in a Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office report as a teacher, was jailed Thursday after Home Depot opted to prosecute the case.
According to police, “Karen Berger was seen entering the Home Depot through the main entrance. The subject then proceeded to the store’s lighting fixtures department and selected two Swirl LED Chrome Mini valued at $99.97 each, one Keighley 36” LED Crystal Island valued at $219, one Essence Disk LED Integrated Chrome valued at $109. Then, Berger proceeded towards the front of the store where she went to aisle 8 and selected three moving boxes valued at $2.68 each. Then she proceeded out of aisle 8 and towards to self check out.”
The police report continues: “While in the self-check out Berger scanned the three moving boxes valued at $8.04 total, and two Swirl LED Chrome Mini Pendant valued at $199.94 for both making a total purchase of $207.98. Berger did not attempt to scan and pay for the other lighting fixtures that were inside her shopping cart, depriving Home Depot of the amount of $756.”
Caught on camera, according to the report, “Berger exited the store via the main exit with the unpaid merchandise where she was intercepted and brought back into the store’s loss prevention office by the store’s loss prevention investigators. The Home Depot would like to prosecute.”
Karen Berger is now charged with one count of Retail Grand Theft, according to police. She was booked into the Palm Beach County Jail at 3:10 Thursday afternoon. She was released on $1000 bond — ironically, more than the amount of the alleged theft — just after 10 p.m.
Berger lives in the 8400 block of Apple Falls Lane in a home she paid $961,485 for in January of 2021, according to the Palm Beach County Property Appraiser.
