Woodbury shoplifting report turns into felony heroin case

A shoplifting stop turned into a felony case for two St. Paul Park people arrested Monday in Woodbury.

Woodbury police were called Nov. 24 to Walmart on Hudson Road for a shoplifting report.

A Walmart loss-prevention worker told the officer that a man and a woman were observed concealing about $20 worth of merchandise inside the woman’s purse before both suspects walked out of the store.

When police went to search the female suspect, identified in a criminal complaint as 27-year-old Shelby Cook, they found a syringe tucked into her sock.

The syringe later tested positive for the presence of heroin, according to the complaint.

The man accompanying Cook, 42-year-old Kevin McMillen, allowed police to search his vehicle. Inside the vehicle police found a vial containing a residue that field-tested positive for heroin.

Other drug paraphernalia, including a pipe and a syringe, were also found inside the vehicle.

During interviews with police, Cook admitted to shoplifting and said she stashed the needle in her boot after McMillen asked her to once he learned police were being summoned, the complaint states.

The suspects, who share the same address, were both charged with one count of fifth-degree drug possession, a felony that carries a maximum penalty of five years in prison and a $10,000 fine.

McMillen made his initial court appearance Thursday, Nov. 29. Cook’s first appearance is set for Dec. 20.

Tags: crime and courts, news, crime