A mother and daughter are facing criminal charges after Boca Raton police say they used a dog stroller to smuggle stolen shoes and swimsuits out of retail shops at a luxury resort. Joanne Denardo, 57, and her daughter, Danielle Spoleti, 30, are accused of taking $1,725 worth of merchandise from stores inside The Boca Raton before making the mistake of coming back the next day.
According to cbs12.com, Boca Raton police responded to the resort at 491 E. Camino Real on Sunday after hotel security reported that the two women had returned following an alleged shoplifting incident. Officers say that return visit is what ultimately led to their arrests, as detailed by cw34.com.
Surveillance Footage Allegedly Shows a Shoe Swap
Investigators say surveillance video described in the affidavit showed Denardo placing a pair of beige shoes into a dog stroller while inside the store. Spoleti was then seen leaving wearing a different pair, in blue, while still carrying the original beige shoes she had worn into the shop earlier, per the same account. Police say the pair left without paying for the merchandise.
The probable cause affidavit lists three pairs of shoes valued at $475 each along with two swimsuits valued at $150 each, for a total of $1,725, the station's report notes. BocaNewsNow.com, however, reported that investigators described the confirmed losses as three pairs of shoes at $475 each and two swim trunks at $150 each, a detail that varies slightly between the two outlets' accounts of the same items.
Items Allegedly Hidden Beneath the Dog
When officers searched the stroller, they allegedly found the swimsuits tucked beneath the dog riding inside it and under the carriage's mat, tags still attached. Spoleti told officers she thought her mother would buy the shoes, the affidavit states, while Denardo said she had returned to the property specifically to return two swimsuits she had taken.
Danielle Victoria Spoleti and her mother were arrested Sunday afternoon and charged with retail theft while coordinating with others, according to BocaNewsNow.com. Both women were booked into the Palm Beach County Jail, with bond for Spoleti listed at $5,000, that outlet reported.
What Florida Law Says About Coordinated Retail Theft
Under the Florida Senate's retail theft statute, thefts committed individually or in concert within a 120-day period can be aggregated to determine total value when that value exceeds $3,000. The statutory excerpt does not clarify how that provision applies to the $1,725 figure cited in this case, and the charges against Denardo and Spoleti remain allegations. Both defendants are presumed innocent unless proven guilty.
