When a couple suspected of shoplifting came face to face with an officer, they both tried to convince him the man was someone else. It didn’t work. The name they gave belonged to another man who is in prison.

Larry W. Gilreath, Jr., 44, of Monroe County, is wanted on a warrant for his arrest that was issued on December 5. He’s accused of walking out of a local store in a pair of boots he didn’t pay for. He’s facing preliminary charges of theft as a Level 6 felony, because he has a previous conviction for theft, and identity deception, a Level 6 felony.

Shawna Douglas, 27, of eastern Greene County, is being summoned to appear in court in early January for an initial hearing on preliminary charges of theft, a Class A misdemeanor, and false informing, a Class B misdemeanor. She’s accused of shoplifting a pair of socks.

Officer John Agan, the lead investigator, and Sgt. Logan Hobbs, both of the Linton Police Department, were dispatched to the Orscheln Farm and Home store in October about a shoplifting complaint.

When they arrived, employees of the store pointed to a man in the parking lot, later identified as Gilreath, who was wearing a brand-new pair of boots they said came from the store. They said they found the boot box but the boots had been replaced by a pair of slippers. The boots were valued at $119.99. Later, he allegedly admitted stealing the boots.

When they talked to Gilreath, he allegedly said his name was John Douglas and that his wife, Shawna Douglas, was shopping at Gordman’s. When Officer Hobbs located her, she allegedly handed him a pair of Mossy Oak socks and admitted she stole them from Orscheln’s. The socks were valued at $5.99.

According to Officer Agan, Shawna also said Gilreath’s name was John Douglas, but the two gave different birthdates for John Douglas and the identity could not be confirmed through BMV records.

When all was sorted out, officers determined Shawna Douglas was married to John Douglas, but he was currently incarcerated in the Indiana DOC’s Edinburgh Correctional Facility.

Although Officer Agan did not speculate about a motive for the identity deceptions, court records indicate there were other warrants out for Gilreath’s arrest. He’s currently in the Owen County Jail where he’s facing charges of resisting law enforcement with a vehicle, resisting law enforcement – knowingly or intentionally fleeing from law enforcement, unlawful possession of a syringe and domestic battery. There’s also a pending case against him in Monroe County on charges of possession of methamphetamine and unlawful possession of a syringe and there’s two other warrants out for him, both issued in other pending cases in Monroe County.