HOUSTON — A woman is facing charges around two months after authorities said she stole an expensive guitar from a Houston store and then pawned it in Sugar Land.
Alana Aleman, 37, is charged with felony theft. Court documents filed last week showed that she hadn't been arrested.
Investigators said she stole a $2,500 Gibson Les Paul guitar from Southpaw Guitars on Bellaire Boulevard on Nov. 27.
What she's accused of doing
According to court documents, the store owner told investigators that Aleman went into the store and told the owner that she was looking for a guitar for her boyfriend. As she was looking around, she grabbed the Les Paul and put it by the front counter. The owner said Aleman went back to looking at guitars for a while and eventually grabbed the guitar she staged near the front counter and walked out of the store without paying.
She got into a U-Haul with Arizona plates and left.
The store owner said he reviewed his surveillance video to find out what happened. He said the guitar was valued at $2,500 and he provided police with the unique serial number.
How did investigators identify her?
The store owner reported the theft to police, who searched the serial number in a database that tracks pawn transactions. Investigators said they found out the stolen guitar had been pawned in Sugar Land by Aleman on the same day as the theft.