Sometimes it’s not about the crime, but the affront to those who are proud to work on Anna Maria Island.
Such was the case for the owner of Bella By The Sea home boutique on Pine Avenue May 19 when she caught an out-of-state shoplifter at work in her store.
Emily Kello, 48, of Indianapolis, was arrested by the Manatee County Sheriff’s Office for petit theft at the boutique after Joann Lefner stopped her outside the store at 218 Pine Ave.
Lefner watched Kello spend an hour or so in the store, taking pictures and moving merchandise to different locations, including a table near the door. The store owner watched as the woman the store — and suspected she’d taken an item.
Lefner immediately followed the suspect outside and asked to check her bag, but Kello refused, she said.
Lefner told Kello she was calling the sheriff’s office and Kello began fumbling with her bag. It ripped and a candle from the store fell out, according to Lefner.
“The sad part is she was here on vacation,” Lefner said.
“She showed no remorse for what she did. I asked her ‘Why did you steal from me?’ but she didn’t care.
“If she’d said she didn’t have the money” or showed remorse, Lefner said she might have reacted differently.
The boutique owner told how a boy had been saving his money for a bracelet for his mom for Mother’s Day. When the boy came back to buy it and began counting his money, Lefner stopped him, saying it was “his lucky day — the bracelet was half-price.”
“He was the happiest person in the world,” she said.
But with the shoplifter, Lefner emphasized moral principles.
“I don’t care if it’s a $20 candle or a $400 dress. Everyone here, we work hard for our money.”