A Long County man was arrested by the Ludowici Police Department on Aug. 10 after he allegedly stole some items from a local store.  

LPD Officer Sam Frank responded to a possible theft at the Dollar Store in Ludowici. Over the phone, the store manager told Frank the man was wearing red shorts and a black shirt. As Frank approached the store’s parking lot, he spotted a man matching the manager’s description getting into a Plymouth Neon. The officer stopped the man and asked if he had been in the store and if he had taken any items without paying for them.

The man, who was identified as Paul McGowan Jr., said he had taken merchandise, which included a package of disposable razors and three toys. The officer said McGowan then asked if he could return the items and face no charges. Frank replied no.

The suspect was taken back into the store and identified as the man whom the store manager witnessed stealing the merchandise. The manager told Frank that McGowan had placed the items in his pants and walked out of the store. The manager also said they had witnessed Frank stealing several DVDs approximately a week earlier.

McGowan was arrested and charged with theft by shoplifting. According to LPD Chief Robert Poppell, McGowan also had a probation violation against him and is still being held in the LPD jail.

In a separate case, at around 3:40 a.m. Aug. 20, Frank observed a gold Chevrolet Impala traveling eastbound on Cypress Street that was failing to stay in the proper lane. The officer pulled over the driver, who was identified as Shfonda Wallace, 27, of Stone Mountain. Frank discovered that Wallace did not have a valid driving license, so she was detained. He then asked her if she had any illegal items in the car. She said the car was not hers.

Frank said that during the mandatory vehicle inventory, he discovered a glass pipe known as a grinder, which is commonly used to smoke narcotics. Frank said that after appropriate testing was conducted on the pipe, it was discovered to have been used to smoke marijuana. Wallace was arrested and charged with driving without a license, failure to maintain the proper lane and possession of a drug related object.