A mundane crime occurred at the Arundel Mills mall in Maryland last night: an employee noticed three people shoplifting shirts and hats from a Zumiez store and alerted security. One of the trio escaped from security and ran away from the mall into a drainage pond nearby. Instead of escaping, he drowned.

A police spokesman said that the man “…tried to make a run for it, if you will, into the sediment pond.” The pond was up to 20 feet deep in spots, and filled with silt and plants. Local police and fire departments mounted a rescue effort but the man had drowned by the time they found him.

Anne Arundel County police report that shirts and hats were found in the water near the man’s body. The police presume that he died of accidental drowning, but the results from his autopsy are pending.

Shoplifter’s Body Found In Pond Near Arundel Mills [CBS Baltimore]

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