Fairfax County Police have charged a Leesburg man in connection with a shoplifting incident that a Target employee claims he was fired for reporting.
On Tuesday morning, Leesburg police announced that Robert H. Palmer Jr., 50, of Leesburg, turned himself in on two counts of petit larceny. He was released on a $5,000 bond, and is due back in court Aug. 12.
Leesburg police announced Monday that a Fairfax County Sheriff's Office employee would be charged with shoplifting in a case that drew attention after the Target security officer who reported the alleged crime was fired.
However, Leesburg police would not confirm to NBC Washington that Palmer is or had been an employee of the Fairfax County Sheriff's Office. NBC Washington is awaiting comment from Fairfax County authorities.
Leesburg police say they identified a suspect a few days after the theft in late May, and were awaiting word from Target on whether to proceed with charges. Police say they got that word from Target on Monday.
Police say the decision to fire the security guard was a corporate decision made by Target.
The guard, Dallas Northington, told the Washington Post that he was fired after Target told him he violated procedure by not filling out paperwork before calling police. However, Northington said store supervisors recognized the suspect.
