A late-night Walmart run in Summerfield turned into a full-blown foot chase after a Lady Lake man allegedly tried to leave the store with more than $60 in unpaid merchandise, then bolted when confronted by store security.
According to the Marion County Sheriff’s Office, deputies were called to the Walmart at 17961 S. U.S. Highway 441 on Sunday, Feb. 1, after asset protection flagged a “known theft suspect” moving through the store. The man was later identified as Joseph Anthony Kalbhenn.
Store security told deputies Kalbhenn was seen concealing items on his person before walking past all points of sale and heading for the exit. When the asset protection specialist identified himself and asked Kalbhenn to stop, deputies waiting outside watched him burst through the doors “at a dead sprint.”
What followed was a roughly 500-yard foot chase through the parking lot, with deputies giving repeated commands to stop while a patrol vehicle rolled alongside with lights and sirens activated. The run ended when Kalbhenn was caught and taken into custody.
A search turned up what he allegedly tried to make off with: two packages of Hot Hands hand warmers, a Nebo Franklin Swyvel 600-lumen flashlight, and a LEGO Formula 1 model set, with a combined value of $60.33. Investigators noted he had no prior petit theft convictions.
After being read his rights, Kalbhenn reportedly admitted to taking the items and said he ran because he was scared, even though he knew law enforcement was chasing him.
Things became more complicated when deputies searched his wallet and found a Florida driver’s license belonging to someone else. Kalbhenn told deputies he found it on the side of the road and never tried to return it or turn it in.
At the Marion County Jail, deputies made another discovery. Crushed aluminum foil and pieces of a disassembled syringe were found on the floor of the patrol car where Kalbhenn had been sitting. He later told deputies the items had been hidden in a secret pocket in his pants and that they contained what he believed to be methamphetamine residue. Testing instead came back presumptively positive for fentanyl.
Kalbhenn was booked on multiple misdemeanor charges, including retail petit theft, resisting an officer without violence, resisting the recovery of stolen property, unlawful possession of another person’s identification, and possession of drug paraphernalia. Bond was set at a total of $3,500.
What started as a handful of winter warmers, a flashlight, and a LEGO race car ended with flashing lights, a long run across the Walmart parking lot, and a trip to the county jail.
