OSCEOLA COUNTY, Fla. — An arrest has been made after two women were accused of leaving children behind after they were caught allegedly stealing hundreds of dollars worth of groceries from a Publix store in Osceola County over the weekend.
The incident happened Sunday at a Publix on Blake Boulevard in the Celebration area.
On Thursday, Channel 9 learned one of the suspects, Kristen Grodetz, was arrested and booked into the Lee County Jail after turning herself in, according to the Lee County Sheriff's Office website.
Authorities said employees called deputies to the store after spotting the group trying to leave with a full shopping cart.
Raw: Surveillance of Publix theft suspects
"They did direct the girls to put products into used Publix bags and into the shopping cart," said Twis Lizasuain with the Osceola County Sheriff's Office.
According to investigators, Jessica Barker, 31, Grodetz, 25, and the children filled two carts with $475 worth of merchandise and groceries.
Deputies said when Barker and Grodetz were confronted by an employee, they fled with a 3-year-old child, but left two 11-year-old girls behind.
"If they were stealing the food for the children, that's one thing. But them to leave the children behind, that's another," shopper Christopher Cote said.
One woman was the guardian of one of the 11-year-old girls, and the other was the mother of the child, but police aren’t sure who the 3-year-old belongs to.
"If you're the one stealing, why are you going to leave your kids to steal? Nobody should do that," shopper Scott Dobbs said.
Deputies had the girls call the suspects, and Barker said she would come back to pick them up, but she never returned, investigators said. The Sheriff's Office said the women were believed to be visiting Osceola County from the Fort Myers area.
Barker has been arrested several times before in the southwest Florida area for theft and one incident involved a child, according to Lee County records.
Authorities called the Department of Children and Families to assist with the case. The girls were reunited with family members, but deputies said the search continues for Barker and Grodetz after they weren't found at their homes in southwest Florida.
Grodetz has a lengthy criminal record, dating back to 2007, of theft, fraud and dealing stolen property, authorities said.
Deputies said the suspects are from southwest Florida and believe that's where they are. They are working with local detectives to track the two down.
The sheriff's office said an arrest warrant has been issued for the women. Anyone with information on their whereabouts is asked to contact the Osceola County Sheriff's Office.