Notorious 86-year-old jewel thief Doris Payne released from jail

ATLANTA — Notorious international jewel thief, Doris Payne, who has stolen about $2 million in jewelry over the last six decades and reflected on her crimes in a documentary, is a free woman again.

Payne, 86, was arrested at a Walmart in metro Atlanta in Chamblee in July after she allegedly took $86.22 in merchandise from the pharmacy, electronics and grocery departments, according to Chamblee police.

At the time, Payne was on 120 days of house arrest, which was part of her sentence in March for stealing a necklace from high-end retailer Von Maur at an Atlanta area mall in 2016. She was also sentenced to three years probation and banned from shopping in any mall in DeKalb County, Georgia.

But even though the Chamblee case is still pending, on Friday Payne walked out of jail when a DeKalb Superior Court judge revoked her probation, according to the DeKalb sheriff's office and Payne's attorney.

“There was not enough new evidence on the new arrest,” the attorney, Marissa Goldberg, told The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. “She’s free.”

Over the years, Payne has dressed in fine clothes with deep pockets, charmed sales workers at high-end department stores, distracted them and slipped out with expensive jewelry.

She was the subject of a 2013 documentary, "The Life and Crimes of Doris Payne," that detailed how her theft habits began when she was in her 20s.

Staff writer Steve Burns contributed to this report.

Cox Media Group