Pair arrested for stealing nearly $1,000 in merchandise from clothing stores

Staff report

GAINESVILLE, Fla. – Tavares Dequan Holmes, 29, of Gainesville, and Tiara Cherrelle Richardson, 36, of Ocala, were arrested yesterday and charged with petit theft, grand theft, and resisting an officer without violence after allegedly stealing nearly $1,000 in merchandise from two stores and running from an officer.

At about 12:55 p.m. on July 2, the Loss Prevention Officer (LPO) at Marshalls (3965 Plaza Blvd) reportedly saw Holmes putting children’s clothing into a large bag and then walking out without paying; the items were reportedly valued at $121.93. The LPO reported that Richardson was also in the store, distracting employees so that Holmes’ activities would not be noticed. The LPO reported that Holmes took the clothes to a vehicle, then came back into the store and spoke with Richardson before they both left.

The LPO reported that he followed the pair to the Oaks Mall, where they took large, empty bags and went inside; while they were inside the mall, the LPO noted that he saw several bags of merchandise from both his store and other stores in their car.

At about 1:10 p.m., the pair allegedly entered Hot Topic and took clothing worth $777.93 from the store. While in Hot Topic, Richardson allegedly spoke to employees to distract them and walked up to one employee to show her that her purse was empty and she was not stealing anything.

When the pair came out of the mall, the LPO was on the phone with a Gainesville Police Department officer who responded to the mall and commanded the pair to stop. However, they allegedly threw bags into the vehicle and then ran. Holmes reportedly surrendered when he was found by additional responding officers, and Richardson allegedly ran back into the mall and was tackled to the ground by the arresting officer.

The LPO reportedly identified items in the car that had been stolen from Marshalls, and the arresting officer reported that the stolen items from Hot Topic were also in the car, along with 20-30 items from another store that could not be confirmed as stolen at the time of the arrest.

Post Miranda, Holmes reportedly refused to answer any questions.

Holmes has juvenile convictions between 2007 and 2012. He was arrested in March 2022 for stealing $11,000 in candles from Bath & Body Works and was sentenced to 36 months of probation; after violating probation by being arrested in Hillsborough County, probation was revoked and he was sentenced to 120 days in jail with credit for 22 days served. He is still on pre-trial release in the Hillsborough County case. Holmes has three felony convictions (none violent) and four misdemeanor convictions (none violent). Judge Meshon Rawls set bail at $30,000.

Post Miranda, Richardson reportedly said Holmes had asked her to come with him to the store and “watch her back” and that Holmes steals items and sells them.

Richardson has three felony convictions (three violent) and six misdemeanor convictions (three violent). She has served one state prison sentence and was released in 2014. Judge Meshon Rawls set bail at $12,000.

Articles about arrests are based on reports from law enforcement agencies. The charges listed are taken from the arrest report and/or court records and are only accusations. All suspects are innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.

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