Suspect Boosted Toys For Tot Donation Box, Claimed He Needed Money For Diapers: Report

A Florida man is accused of boosting a Toys for Tots donation box from a Florida store earlier this month, according to a report.

Recently, the Marion County Sheriff’s Office in Florida arrested William Thomas Smith in connection to the case, according to the Ocala News.

Around 2:45 p.m. on Dec. 4, a store manager spoke to a sheriff’s deputy and said a man was seen sliding the box, which was filled with money, to the edge of a counter in a Dollar General. The suspect then put the box under a baby carrier that was in his cart.

Police determined there was about $800 worth of donations in the box, according to the report.

A few days later, a tipster told police Smith was their suspect and he slept in the woods.

Deputies identified Smith as the suspect and went to the area he lived, according to the Ocala News. A witness said Smith came home from the Dollar General with the money, but she didn’t know where it came from.

Smith was arrested and admitted to the theft, according to the report. He said he needed the money to buy diapers and the box had $18 in it. He said he threw the donation bin into the garbage.

Police charged Smith with second-degree petit theft and possession of drug paraphernalia.