Walmart Presses Felony Charge In Oreo Theft

FEBRUARY 21--Walmart is pressing a felony charge against a 63-year-old worker who has been accused of stealing a bag of Oreo cookies from the Indiana store where she worked on the maintenance crew.

Penny Winters was arrested this week after Walmart launched an internal investigation upon the discovery of an empty cookie wrapper. A subsequent review of surveillance footage showed “Ms. Winters select the package of cookies, open it, and proceed to consume multiple cookies during her work shift,” according to a Portage Police Department report.

Cops did not estimate the value of the “multiple cookies” consumed by Winters, who has been fired from her $11.40 position with the retail giant.

When confronted by a Walmart “asset protection manager,” Winters admitted taking the Oreos, adding that she had also helped herself to other snacks during her seven-month tenure at the store (Winters had previously worked for several years at a Walmart in Arizona).

Winters, seen in the above mug shot, told the Walmart investigator that she “simply did not have the monies to legitimately purchase the food items."

When cops asked her about the Oreos, Winters claimed she found an open package of the cookies near a cash register and assumed that they had been provided for free by management.

Winters was arrested Monday and charged with felony theft for pinching the Oreos (and other unspecified junk food). Winters was released from the Porter County jail Tuesday after posting bond. (2 pages)