You might recall back in October CMPD Command staff proudly telling the gathered news crowd that Officers had arrested the SouthPark Morrocroft Harris Teeter "Bear Spray" Organized Retail Shoplifting crooks.
Said CMPD Major Ryan Butler:
“The city has seen a rise in these crimes, which are increasingly violent and threaten the safety of retail employees and customers.”
CMPD officers had located and arrested five suspects who committed numerous shoplifting incidents throughout the City of Charlotte. The shoplifting incidents escalated into Common Law Robberies when the suspects sprayed retail employees with bear spray in order to flee the scene.
The case that was well documented by local media and occurred on Sunday, Sept. 1, 2024 at a Harris Teeter store in CMPD’s Providence Division in the 6700 block of Carnegie Boulevard.
The suspects used hijabs (head coverings) to disguise their appearances. When a store employee approached the suspects and asked for them to leave, they sprayed the worker with bear spray.
According to CMPD, as a result of the investigation, detectives identified two suspects involved and were able to link these suspects as well as three others to several organized retail crime cases. On Friday, Sept. 20, officers arrested and charged the following suspects in connection with these incidents:
Zaniya Howard, 18
Soverria Davis, 19
Heaven Manning, 20
Amiya Beatty, 22
Shaquilla Martin, 29
Now that as far as the local media was concerned was the end of it. But not in Charloote where jail is just a small inconvenience.
Zaniya Howard was arrested again on December 2 and then again on December 16 she spent a few days in jail until a Mecklenburg County Judge lowered her bail and she was released on December 21.
Soverria Davis was arrested again on October 1 and released on December 3.
Heaven Manning hasn't been arrested since.
Amiya Beatty was arrested again on October 15, and then on October 25 and then on November 1 and most recently December 5 and released again on December 9. She currently has more than 20 cases pending and not a single conviction.
Shaquilla Martin was also charged on a probation violation but was released on November 8 and hasn't been arrested since.
Charlotte store owners and managers should post these photos so that every employee knows who these people are and that they are dangerous.