Mobile police are asking for the public’s help identifying two men accused of walking out of a Circle K convenience store with more than $1,400 worth of cigarettes.
The theft happened in the early evening at the Circle K location on Tanner Williams Road, near Elsie Collier Elementary School, according to city crime data released by the Mobile Police Department. Officers responded to the store around 5:15 p.m. after employees reported that two men had taken multiple cartons of cigarettes without paying.
More than a week later, police released a photo showing one of the two suspects in hopes that someone would recognize him. Department spokesman Officer Terence Perkins confirmed the images were tied to the Tanner Williams Road theft but did not provide further description of either suspect.
Both men are wanted on charges of second-degree theft of property, an offense under Alabama law typically reserved for stolen goods valued between $500 and $1,500. Mobile police did not indicate whether the pair were believed to be connected to similar thefts elsewhere in the city.
Retail theft involving high-value tobacco products has remained a persistent issue for convenience stores across Mobile, since cartons of cigarettes are lightweight, easy to resell and carry significant value compared with other merchandise on store shelves. Loss-prevention officials in the retail industry have long flagged tobacco as a frequent target for organized theft rings as well as opportunistic shoplifters.
Anyone who recognizes the man in the released photo, or who has information about the theft, was asked to contact the Mobile Police Department. Tips can help investigators build a case even without an immediate arrest, and police routinely rely on public identification to close out theft cases where surveillance footage exists but names do not.
Mobile police continue to encourage residents to report suspicious activity at local convenience stores, noting that public tips have helped resolve similar theft cases in the past even without immediate video identification.