Deputies say a Florida woman left three kids alone in her car while shoplifting at a department store on Black Friday.
Jenni Marie Ennis, 28, faces charges of petit theft, retail theft and child neglect.
According to the arrest report filed by the Jacksonville Sheriff's Office, deputies responding to a Kohl's department store around 6:30 p.m. found Ennis trying to leave the store without paying for $632.70 in merchandise, which included Fitbit watches, clocks and Bluetooth speakers.
Deputies say a worker at the store who had observed Ennis as she loaded the items into a shopping cart called JSO for help once she left the store without paying, leading them to find her pushing the cart in the parking lot.
As deputies approached Ennis, she said she needed to contact someone inside her car. Children were discovered in a 2004 gray Honda Accord which had the engine running and the air conditioner on, per the report. A 32-inch Element television still in its box and other items which investigators believe may have been stolen were found during a vehicle search. Those items were seized by JSO as investigators try to figure out who owns them.
The ages of the kids were redacted from the JSO report, as was any mention of their relationship to Ellis.
Duval County Jail records show Ennis has been booked 12 times since 2009 on a variety of charges, including knowingly driving with a suspended license, marijuana possession, petit theft, grand theft, employee theft and dealing in stolen property. She's been previously convicted for driving with a suspended license and twice for petit theft, per jail records.
About the Author
