NEW KENSINGTON, Pa. — A Ford City man has been charged with retail theft after allegedly stealing over $13,000 worth of trading cards from a store in New Kensington.
New Kensington Police responded to reports of suspected retail theft at the Feisty Goblin on Fifth Avenue in late November. Store owners reported that they believed a frequent customer had been stealing merchandise since early November.
“Almost every store knew him by name or by picture. They knew who he was. He was very friendly and talkative. You would never think that it would have happened,” Jim Radeshak said, the store manager for Feisty Goblin Game house.
Police reviewed surveillance footage and observed Jeffrey Spang, 48, stealing merchandise by placing items directly into a bag or by distracting workers and leaving the store with the items, according to a release from the Westmoreland County District Attorney’s Office.
Radeshak said it was another game store owner who noticed Spang’s suspicious trade while he was visiting the store.
“Some of the cards were very unique,” said Radeshak. “So at that point he realized those were the ones that were stolen from his store.”
Spang reportedly stole from the store on 12 different occasions, with the total loss amounting to over $13,118.
“We went back up to a month and saw multiple times,” Radeshak said. “When he would just ask the employee for an item, and when they bent over or turned around, he would take some items and put them in his bag or pockets, and then he would walk out, and walk back in and resume the trade.”
Investigators executed a search warrant on Spang’s vehicle, which was located outside the store, and discovered more packs of stolen trading cards.
The stolen trading cards are believed to be rare and allegedly taken from around the Pittsburgh region.
Now Radeshak is warning other game store owners to look over their security camera video.
“No one knew what was going on until we happened to catch it by luck,” Radeshak said.
Anyone with information about the stolen cards is asked to contact New Kensington Police at 724-339-7533 and ask for Detective Huth.
Spang is expected to appear in court later this month to face charges related to the thefts.
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