Palmer Township police are asking the public for help identifying a man accused of walking out of the Home Depot in Easton with roofing-coating containers worth more than $1,000 on Oct. 23. Investigators have not released the suspect's name, age or a description, and no arrest has been announced.
According to WFMZ.com, the theft happened at the Home Depot location and the stolen merchandise was valued above the $1,000 mark. The outlet reported that police released footage of the suspect in hopes someone can put a name to his face.
A Pattern of Home Depot Thefts in Palmer Township
This is not the first time Palmer Township police have turned to the public for help identifying someone connected to a theft at the same Home Depot on South 25th Street. A separate WFMZ report on the department's outreach efforts notes an ongoing investigation into retail theft and credit-card fraud that occurred at the store on April 25, with the report additionally including footage of the suspect's vehicle. It's unclear whether that April case is connected to the Oct. 23 roofing-coating theft or stands as an entirely separate matter.
Anyone with information on the April 25 case has been asked to contact the investigating officer by email at [email protected]. The same Home Depot has shown up repeatedly in Palmer Township police appeals over the years. In a prior case, the department reported that two females took over $2,000 in merchandise from the store, according to the same WFMZ account.
Earlier Cases Show a Familiar Playbook
The store's history with theft cases goes back years. Per the Palmer Township Police Department Crimewatch page, officers in July 2019 sought to identify two subjects involved in a retail theft and a police vehicle pursuit at the same Home Depot. That case involved drills, cardboard boxes, paper towels and laundry detergent valued at more than $1,000, with both subjects fleeing together in a white Jeep Cherokee driven by the male suspect. Anyone with information on that older case can still submit a tip or contact Officer Alex Soloe, citing Incident No. 19-06563, per the Crimewatch listing.
A more recent case detailed by Newport Dispatch described a theft at 4:15 p.m. on Aug. 2 at the same 721 S. 25th St. address, in which a suspect identified as Brobst allegedly selected a Milwaukee lawn mower and a DeWalt power washer valued at $1,948. Newport Dispatch reported that the merchandise was loaded into a white Ford Expedition before the suspect drove off without paying.
Retail Theft Climbing Statewide
The Easton case lands amid a broader statewide increase in retail theft. Retail theft offenses in Pennsylvania rose 16% from 2023 to 2024, reaching a five-year high, according to the Unified Judicial System of Pennsylvania. The courts' data covers statewide offenses filed between Jan. 1, 2020, and Dec. 31, 2024, and includes monthly counts, the ten counties with the highest totals, and defendant demographics.
Under Pennsylvania law, retail theft involving more than $1,000 is classified as a third-degree felony, according to the Pennsylvania General Assembly. State statute also allows amounts from multiple retail thefts committed as part of one scheme or course of conduct to be aggregated when prosecutors determine the grade of the offense.
No charges have been filed in the Oct. 23 case, and the suspect's identity remains unknown. Palmer Township police have not said whether the investigation is connected to any of the department's earlier Home Depot cases.
