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STAFF REPORT

Monday, February 27
BENNINGTON — A man and woman in the country illegally were arrested Friday after they were found with almost $13,000 in clothes shoplifted from Manchester outlet stores, according to police.

At 6:47 p.m., Jose Molina-Aquirre, 53, and an Monica Ordonez-Romero, 29, both natives of Columbia, were taken into custody after Bennington Police Officer Erick Ericksen made a routine traffic stop of their Dodge Caravan on West Main Street near Jennings Drive, police said.

Recovered from a duffel bag

Ericksen said he recovered a number of expensive pieces of clothing from a duffel bag and some other bags in the Caravan that Molina-Aquirre and Ordonez-Romero were driving.

According to police reports, one of the bags contained 26 golf shirts and five purses from Burberry worth more than $4,000, 85 shirts and sweaters from J.Crew worth about $1,180 and 19 Coach wallets worth about $2,550.

There were about 160 pieces of clothing from Victoria's Secrets worth about $2,650 and 10 pairs of Ralph Lauren pants worth almost $900 dollars, according to police.

Cpl. Thalia Hudson of the Bennington Police said it was easily in the top two or three for the most expensive amount of merchandise recovered from an alleged shoplifting incident in the last five years in town.

Ericksen said he stopped the Caravan, which had Pennsylvania license plates, because a license plate light was out. When he spoke to Ordonez-Romero, he said, she seemed nervous and avoided eye contact. Ericksen also noticed that Molina-Aquirre's Immigration and Naturalization Service's identification was expired.

While searching the back of the Caravan, Ericksen became suspicious because he found reinforced bags lined with aluminum foil. According to Ericksen, those bags are used by shoplifters because they interfere with the store's security systems.

Confirming the stolen goods

Ericksen said that he had been in contact with store owners and confirmed that all the items except the clothing from Victoria's Secrets had come from outlet stores in Manchester. Molina-Aquirre and Ordonez-Romero, who said they were visiting from Philadelphia, entered the United States legally, according to police.

But their visas had expired, leading police to notify the U.S. Border Patrol.

Ericksen said that he was able to speak to Molina-Aquirre and Ordonez-Romero with the help of Bennington Police Officer Sam Morris and dispatcher Marcella Williams, who both speak Spanish.

Hudson said the pair was being held in Marble Valley Correctional Facility. Court Clerk Mary Frost issued bail at $2,500, but Hudson said because of their immigration status, INS would have detained them even if they had posted.

Molina-Aquirre and Ordonez-Romero are due to appear in Bennington District Court on Monday to be arraigned on shoplifting charges, police said. When those charges are resolved, they will be turned over to federal authorities, according to police. Although the alleged crime took place in Manchester, the Bennington Police Department is handling the case.