Delhi PD: 'Meat thief' strikes Kroger

A man who police said Delhi Township supermarkets refer to as the "meat thief" was arrested Wednesday night.

Leroy Owens was already banned from the Delhi Township Remke after he was accused of stealing steaks there on three occasions in July. He was arrested Wednesday and charged with two more counts of steak theft, this time from the Delhi Kroger store.

"It's to a point where the supermarkets will call us and say, 'our meat thief is back,' " said Delhi Police Department Lt. Joe Macaluso.

Police say Owens, 27, stole more than $200 worth of steaks from the Kroger on Wednesday afternoon and night.

Owens was arrested at his Delhi Township home around 11 p.m. after fleeing from the Kroger in on Delhi Road, according to court records. He faces two misdemeanor theft charges from Wednesday.

Owens left the store around 1:20 p.m. without paying for steaks valued at $100, records state. Court documents say Owens later returned and left without paying for $118 worth of steaks around 8:10 p.m.

"What we have is a guy that is probably selling it on the street for quarters or nickels to the dollar to support an addiction," Macaluso said. "A person would not steal a raw, uncooked steak if they were hungry. You are doing that simply so you can go on the street and sell it."

Owens was arrested on July 28 after he was accused of three separate steak thefts from the Delhi Remke.

Police said Owens took $168 worth of steaks from the Remke on Delhi Road on July 9, according to court records. On July 10, Owens was accused of returning to the store and stealing "several" more steaks, court records indicate. On July 16, Owens took "several steaks in a shopping bag" without paying, police said in a court complaint.

Owens was arrested Aug. 1 after police said he entered the Remke store even though he was now banned from doing so. He was charged with criminal trespassing, according to court documents.

Kroger provided the Delhi Township Police Department with surveillance video that assisted in the arrest and charges Wednesday, according to court documents.

"What we'll look for now is the root cause of these thefts," Macaluso said. "We would look to find what type of vice it is that holds him and find him a way to get some help."

Court records indicate that Owens has a prior theft conviction. In July 2014, Owens was convicted of stealing more than $3,000 worth of jewelry and posting pictures of the items on Facebook, records state.

Owens is currently being held in the Hamilton County jail. He was set to be arraigned in Hamilton County Municipal Court on Thursday.