Security nabs woman after stealing from 7 stores
NATICK MA May 7 2018 – A Westborough woman was incredulous when police arrested her Tuesday after she stole more than $3,700 worth of goods from seven Natick Mall stores, authorities said.
Generra L. Toogood, 29, admitted to the thefts, but didn’t think she should be arrested when confronted at 4:07 p.m. Tuesday, police spokeswoman Lt. Cara Rossi said on Friday.
“I don’t deserve to go to jail because I stole a shirt,” Toogood told police, according to Rossi.
But, Rossi said, Toogood stole much more than shirts. She took clothing, jewelry, bathing items and food. In all, she stole 62 items from Wegmans, Victoria’s Secret, Uniqlo, Sephora, Body Shop, Zara and Aerie. She had also brought two children – 8- and a 7-year-old girls – with her while she stole, the lieutenant said.
A Wegmans security guard stopped Toogood as she tried to leave the store without paying for more than $400 worth of food and other items from the store.
“Initially, she attempted to flee,” said Rossi. “In her attempt to flee, she dragged the two girls in front of an oncoming vehicle that was barely able to avoid striking them.”
When police arrived, they found all of the other stolen items in the carriage. They went to the other stores and discovered that Toogood had taken a shopping cart from Wegmans into several other stores, where she would put items in it and leave. Rossi said Toogood stole more than $1,300 in Sephora products, and varying amounts from the rest of the stores.
“Once she was in the cruiser, she stated she had made a mistake and she regretted stealing the items,” Rossi said.
Police arrested Toogood, of 346 Turnpike Road, at 4:07 p.m. and charged her with four counts of larceny of property worth more than $250 and three counts of receiving stolen property worth more than $250.
At Toogood’s Natick District Court arraignment on Wednesday, Judge David Cunis released her without bail. She is due back in court on June 19 for a pretrial conference.
