Deputies: Trio stole $4,500 worth of shoes from Adidas outlet

ST. AUGUSTINE, Fla. – Deputies are looking for a trio suspected of stealing nearly 40 pairs of sneakers from the Adidas store at the St. Augustine outlet mall earlier this month.

The theft happened about 8 p.m. Oct. 6, but it wasn't reported until the following week when store employees noticed the shoes -- valued at a combined $4,555 -- were gone.

By then, the culprits already had a running start.

A store employee told deputies that three men carrying several bags were seen browsing the footwear department when the theft occurred, according to an incident report.

She said the trio kept going in and out of the store, but nothing seemed out of the ordinary. Later, an employee found an empty shoe box on the shelves and notified the manager.

Once the manager realized dozens of pairs were missing, she reviewed store surveillance. She said it showed three men leaving the store a number of times with bags filled with merchandise.

The manager said the men involved appear to be the same ones suspected of stealing $1,900 worth of merchandise from the Nike store the same day.

Anyone with information about the men’s identities or whereabouts is asked to contact Deputy Wallace via email at nwallace@sjso.org.