Two shoplifters who targeted Walmart stores in eleven states, including outlets in Hall County, have been sentenced to prison terms of 25 and 40 years, respectively. The pair was convicted in superior court in Canton.
Cherokee County District Attorney Susan Treadaway says over the course of ten months, beginning in August 2022, Anthony Lamar Belser, 56, and George Frank Mayo, 52, stole from Walmart stores in Georgia, Connecticut, Florida, Louisiana, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, and Virginia. The amount of the loot: $320,000.
The Hall County thefts, at stores in Oakwood and Gainesville, occurred in June 2023.
A theft of nearly $15,000 in stolen merchandise from Walmart in Canton led to the investigation, charges, and conviction in this case.
TIMELINE OF THEFTS
August 2022: Morrisville, NC; Smyrna, TN; Nashville, TN; Manchester, TN
September 2022: Adel, GA; Tampa, FL; Palmetto, FL; Bradenton, FL
October 2022: Florence, SC, Columbia, SC, Richmond, VA, Glenn Allen, VA
November 2022: Woodbridge, VA; Worcester, MA; Amherst, NH; Chelmsford, MA; Tewksbury, MA; Windham, ME; Scarborough, ME; Weymouth, MA; Brockton, MA; Waterford, CT; Old Saybrook, CT; Raceland, LA; Thibodaux, LA; Baton Rouge, LA
December 2022: Baker, LA; Baton Rouge, LA; Carencro, LA; Lafayette, LA; Broussard, LA; Canton, GA; Ellijay, GA
April 2023: Cumming, GA; Woodstock, GA
May 2023: Atlanta, GA; Locust Grove, GA; Buford, GA; Milton, GA; Woodstock, GA; Acworth, GA (twice)
June 2023: Loganville, GA; Snellville, GA; Dunwoody, GA; Lithia Springs, GA; Marietta, GA; Gainesville, GA; Oakwood, GA; Buford, GA; Marietta, GA