MEMPHIS, Tenn. — Two people have been arrested after a group of armed, masked males walked out of a Memphis clothing store carrying $20,000 worth of merchandise in broad daylight.
Police believe the suspects were connected to several other crimes over the past few days.
At least seven people were involved in a brazen theft around 2:30 Thursday afternoon at the City Gear in the 2900 block of Lamar. Police say the suspects displayed weapons to intimidate employees as they carried clothes and shoes out the door.
Jessie Lobley, 18, and Jamario Franklin, 19, were arrested in unrelated cases Monday. According to police, they admitted to being involved in the City Gear theft.
They are charged with aggravated robbery and burglary in that case.
Lobley is also charged with theft in two incidents a few days earlier. In a Feb. 13 case, Lobley is accused of stealing a $61,000 Audi A8 from a business on Elvis Presley Boulevard. He is also charged with stealing a Lexus from a business on Summer Avenue on Feb. 9.
Court documents indicate Franklin is also charged with carjacking, especially aggravated kidnapping and theft in a separate case from Feb. 13, when a group of armed men forced a driver out of a Camaro on Ketchum and drove away in the vehicle. He was also connected to two auto burglaries on the same day.
City Gear stores in Memphis have been a frequent target for thieves.
The company met with local officials to discuss the problem after parent company Hibbett said the Memphis area stores were burglarized more than 60 times in 2023.