A San Francisco man was apprehended by Colma Police on Monday following a theft at the Metro Mall Shopping Center. Charges escalating beyond shoplifting to include felony drug possession. According to a social media post from the Colma Police Department, at around 4:41 PM, officers responded to a report of an in-progress theft in which a suspect had concealed merchandise in a suitcase and left a business.
The responding officers spotted a man fitting the description in the parking lot, later identified as Matthew Foster, 38, from San Francisco. The subject had reportedly stolen items totaling approximately $169.00 during his detainment. Officers discovered what they believed to be methamphetamine and also found a wallet containing credit cards and IDs not belonging to Foster, adding to the charges against him. He was already under post-release community supervision, and a records check unearthed a $7,500 misdemeanor warrant for his arrest from a neighboring jurisdiction.
Further complicating Foster's legal woes is his criminal history, which includes four prior theft convictions and three prior drug offense convictions. With the new Proposition 36 law in effect last Wednesday, these priors led to him facing elevated charges of felony theft and felony drug possession under the new statute. He was booked into the San Mateo County Jail on multiple charges, including felony theft, felony drug possession, and possession of a controlled substance, along with shoplifting and the outstanding misdemeanor warrant.
