Photo: Getty Images
A man who thought he overpaid for a beverage at a Pennsylvania convenience store instead underpaid $0.43 and was charged with a felony due to violating a third-strike policy.
PennLive.com reports Joseph Sobolewski, 38, saw a sign for 20-ounce Mountain Dew bottles listed at two for $3 last month at the Exxon store on Susquehanna Trail in Duncannon. Sobolewski grabbed a bottle, left $2 on the counter and left the store, not realiing a single bottle was $2.29, not $1.50, which shortened the store by $0.29 cents plus tax.
The store contacted the authorities and Pennsylvania State Police tracked Sobolewski down, charged with a felony and held in jail on a $50,000 cash-only bond, with the possibility of three-and-a-half to seven years in prison.
Sobolewski, who is homeless, was initially convicted on a theft charge more than 10 years ago after driving away from a gas station without paying for his gasoline.
His second offense came in December 2011 when he was arrested for stealing a pair of shoes from a K-Mart store in Cumberland County listed at $39.99.
“For me, I would get the deterrent factor if someone’s thefts were getting worse or higher in value,” said Brandon Flood, director of the state’s Board of Parole, via PennLive. “But the lack of discretion is what bothers me. It’s problematic because it doesn’t factor in the amount.”
Prosecutors will have to prove that the incident wasn't a misunderstanding and that Sobolewski intentionally short-changed the store.
It is also unclear why the Exxon exmployee wanted to press charges over such a small amount of money, even after confirming to police that Soboloewski put $2 on the counter before leaving the store.