Smithville Man Arrested On Shoplifting and Drug Charges

A 33 year old man, arrested Wednesday by Smithville Police for shoplifting, was also found to have in his possession illegal prescription drugs.
Chief Thomas J. Stufano says Jason Bradley Cripps of 774 Four Seasons Road, Smithville is charged with theft under $500 and possession of a schedule II and III controlled substance for resale.
According to Chief Stufano, ” On February 14th Smithville Police responded to Smithville Food Store for a reported shoplifter. Upon arrival Police made contact with a Food Store employee who identified a white male now known as Cripps as the person responsible for trying to conceal store items without paying for them. Further investigation noted that Cripps did in fact have a number of items concealed inside his clothing which included (2) Crossword Puzzle Books and packages of pens along with sufficient funds on him to pay for the items. Cripps was arrested and transported to the Police Department for further processing. What Police later discovered was that Cripps was also in possession of illegal prescription drugs that amounted to felony distribution charges. Police were able to recover over 21.5 Hydrocodone and 6 Xanax pills with a street value of over $825.00.. He was transported to the DeKalb County Jail with a bond set at $11,000
Chief Stufano says “During the course of the investigation, Cripps’ background noted that he had just been arrested by the Smithville Police for a similar charge of shoplifting a power tool from Walmart on February 5th. At the time of his arrest he had over $435.00 in cash on him.”
“Smithville Police are finding a direct correlation between the illegal use of prescription drugs and other types of crime and are committed to actively investigating all crime in an effort to curtail illegal drug activity in our community. The continued support of the citizens and merchants has shown to be very beneficial in our crime prevention partnership.”