Crime & Safety

Police: Man Swiped Equipment from Camera Shop, Hit Employee with Car

The man told police he ingested Xanax before the incident.

A Broomall man was arrested on Monday after police say he stole supplies from a Haverford Township camera shop, then hit the clerk with his car as he peeled out of its parking lot.

Brendan Patrick Beck, 33, faces charges of robbery, simple assault, retail theft, and harassment stemming from the December 10 incident.

According to court documents, Beck caught the attention of a male employee of The Camera Shop when he was loitering in the store sometime before 3 p.m. the afternoon of the alleged crime. When Beck left the store, a female employee noticed he was carrying a Sony camera box with him. He had not entered the store with the box.

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The male employee then followed Beck into the parking lot, where he sat in a white Honda SUV with the Sony camera box on the passenger seat. The employee knocked on the window and asked Beck if the camera box was his. He replied that it was, but then put the car in gear and, as he pulled out, struck the employee with the bumper of his vehicle. The employee backed away, but was hit again by the vehicle in the right thigh. He then punched through the driver side window, shattering the glass, as Beck sped off.

Based on the testimony of a witness who wrote down his car’s license plate number, Beck was later located and detained by Marple Police, who in turn handed him over to Haverford Police.

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Beck, during an interview with a Haverford Detective, explained that he ingested Xanax pills before entering the camera store and committing the theft. He added that hitting the employee with his vehicle was an accident.


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