Victoria’s Secret Employee Arrested for Stealing an iPhone

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Around 6:29 AM on December 11, 2023, a 43-year-old woman called to report that her daughter had left her iPhone 14 Plus at the Rockaway Mall the previous night, and that they were able to ping the phone to a residence in Hopatcong, NJ. Officers with the Hopatcong Police Department were dispatched there at 6:52 AM and they arrived at 7:08 AM. They made contact with the 58-year-old homeowner Colleen and told her that they had located an iPhone there using GPS.
Colleen told Patrolman David Jacob that she was not aware about this. She was asked if anyone there had any association with the Rockaway Mall, and she told the officers that her son’s girlfriend Shannon worked there. Shannon denied knowing anything about the phone, and patrols cleared the residence.
Rockaway PD and a security officer responded to the Victoria’s Secret store, but did not locate the phone. A check of Shannon’s CCH revealed that she was recently entered into a conditional discharge for a shoplifting incident and her license was currently suspended for DWI.
The caller’s husband eventually accessed his daughter’s iPad and re-pinged the iPhone, and he told police that it was still there. He added that the iPhone was pinging at the Rockaway Mall in the area of Hot Topic and Victoria’s Secret the previous night.
Patrolman Jacob returned with Sergeant Daniel Kern and Patrolman Joseph Fagan at 10:54 AM, but they cleared the residence at 11:00 AM since no one was home. The officers made another trip at 1:25 PM and made contact with Colleen through her Ring camera. They informed her that the iPhone was still pinging there. Colleen told the officers that Shannon worked at Victoria’s Secret. They advised her to contact Shannon and ask about the iPhone, or they would have to contact a judge and apply for a search warrant. Shannon called afterwards and claimed to know nothing about the lost iPhone.
The girl’s father again contacted police to inform them regarding an updated ping location at QuickChek (40 Lakeside Boulevard). Patrolman Jacob contacted Shannon and she told him a new story about how the iPhone was left at QuickChek by Ellie. Sergeant Kern reported there and located the iPhone after it had been wrapped in paper towels and placed in the women’s bathroom garbage. Patrolman Jacob contacted the girl’s father and informed him that they located her iPhone, and he came to headquarters to retrieve it.
The next day, Sergeant Kern went to QuickChek to check the security footage, and confirmed that Shannon entered the QuickChek, walked into the bathroom, and left seconds after. Officers then brought Shannon in for an interview. After initially providing contradictory accounts of what happened and accusing Ellie and Samantha, she eventually admitted that she took the iPhone and discarded it in the women’s restroom at QuickChek. Patrols spoke with both Samantha and Ellie, and each of them denied knowing anything about the iPhone. The officers also believe that they were not involved.
After Shannon was placed under arrest, she was finger printed, photographed, and released pending her court appearance on December 27, 2023. She was charged with the following: Receiving stolen property (2C:20-7A), hindering apprehension (2C:29-3B(1)), and hindering by providing false information (2C:29-3B(4))
Court records indicate that she has previously been arrested for shoplifting from the Target in Rockaway Township on August 27, 2023 and charged under 2C:20-11B(1). That charge was later given a “Conditional Dismissal” along with a total of $633 in fines. She also has 2 previous DWI arrests from Sparta, NJ on March 9, 2022 and Stanhope, NJ on June 22, 2023.
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