A 25-year-old St. Petersburg man shoved an $11.99 sushi sampler pack down his pants and walked out of the Publix on Third Street S without paying on Jan. 14, according to an arrest affidavit.

Michael Erin Harrington walked past the registers but his image was recorded on surveillance cameras, authorities said. He didn't get far.

Police officers found Harrington eating the sushi on a bench outside the grocery store, according to the affidavit. He faces a charge of retail theft.

CLEARWATER

Man tries to steal Bud Light from CVS, laughs at store manager before leaving

Jason Stephen Cruff was all smiles as he left a CVS with two stolen 18-packs of Bud Light on Jan. 10, authorities said, but he soon found out that retail theft is no joke.

The 33-year-old homeless man stole from the CVS at 3765 Ulmerton Road, according to an arrest affidavit. On his way out, sheriff's deputies wrote, Cruff approached a store manager and asked which register he should go to. Then he joked, "Ha ha, I'm not paying for it."

Cruff was arrested the next day, according to the affidavit.

ST. PETERSBURG

Deputies: Man bites Walmart employee who tried to stop him from stealing TVs

A homeless man who Pinellas sheriff's deputies said tried to steal two televisions from the Walmart on Bay Pines Boulevard is facing charges of robbery and battery.

Kenneth Fitzgerald Spells Jr., 21, was arrested Jan. 15. When a Walmart loss prevention worker tried to stop him, Spells pepper-sprayed the man and bit him. He also shouted that he had AIDS, according to an arrest affidavit.

The loss prevention officer was taken to the hospital. Deputies wrote that he had been bitten twice and teeth marks were visible on his left forearm.

Compiled by Zachary T. Sampson, Times staff writer