By Clara Harter
Los Angeles Times
SONOMA COUNTY, Calif. — A woman in Sonoma County tried to get away with retail theft by pretending to be a 12-year-old girl, police say. But her alleged ruse failed, and the 29-year-old was arrested. It turned out she already had an outstanding warrant connected to some $250,000 in stolen goods, authorities said.
Now, Corenesha Brooks of Antioch faces five felony charges of organized retail theft and impersonating a child, according to a news release from the Sonoma County Sheriff’s Office.
Deputies encountered the would-be 12-year-old during a traffic stop Dec. 18 . Two deputies spotted a car with a headlight out and an expired registration near Highway 37 and Arnold Drive near San Pablo Bay. One of the deputies recognized the car from a prior Sonoma County theft.
After pulling over the car around 10:25 p.m., they found a haul of beauty products and alcohol worth an estimated $2,845.
The passenger initially gave deputies a fake name and a 2012 birth date, but they were not fooled by this alibi as the woman appeared older, according to the Sheriff’s Office. Upon further investigation, deputies identified Brooks and learned she had an outstanding warrant in Contra Costa County for charges connected to $250,000 in theft.
Neither Brooks nor the driver, Tawa Higgins, 36, could provide receipts for the goods in the car, which the Sheriff’s Office believed were stolen from at least five locations throughout the county.
Brooks was arrested on suspicion of organized retail theft, possession of stolen property, conspiracy, impersonating another, and having an outside warrant. Higgins, who hails from the Contra Costa County city of Pittsburg, was arrested on suspicion of organized retail theft, possession of stolen property and conspiracy.
The women have since been released on $30,000 bail each.
This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
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