A Gainesville man told police he stole tools from Lowe’s on Monday because his tools were stolen, Gainesville Police said.
John Anderson Tyler, 49, took a 204-piece Kobalt tool set and knife from Lowe’s, located at 2564 NW 13th St., and left the store without paying for the items, according to an arrest report. A witness saw Tyler commit the theft, police said.
Later in the day, Tyler returned to Lowe’s and tried to leave the store with $825.95 worth of items in his shopping cart without paying, according to the report.
After his arrest, he admitted to stealing from Lowe’s, according to the report. He told detectives that someone had stolen all of his tools recently, and he needed to replace them, Detective Matthew Goeckel, a GPD spokesperson, wrote in an email.
Tyler was also arrested on Oct. 22 for taking a 24-can case of Natural Light from Walmart, located at 1800 NE 12th Ave., and leaving the store without paying for it, according to an arrest report.
Tyler was arrested on a charge of grand theft at about 4:10 p.m. and taken to the Alachua County Jail where he remains, as of press time, in lieu of a $10,000 bond.
