Couple accused of stealing 57 blocks of cheese

A young Chattanooga couple were arrested after going on a strange shoplifting spree at the Walmart store in Fort Oglethorpe, Georgia, last week. Twenty-one-year-olds Joshua and Erika Caldwell are facing several theft and drug charges after police said they walked out of the store with hundreds of dollars worth of stolen goods, including 57 blocks of cheese.

It's not clear why the couple decided to steal that much cheese or what they were planning on doing with all of it. But they did have their child with them, though, and police found pot in their car. Fifty-seven blocks of stolen cheese were stuffed in the floorboards, in bags and throughout the vehicle.



"The officer noticed a lot of cheese in places throughout the vehicle and the diaper bag for the child as well," said Fort Oglethorpe Police Chief David Eubanks. Security caught the 21-year-old walking out with a cart full of stuff he didn't pay for. "They walked up and asked him what was going on, and he said, 'Well, I got caught shoplifting'," Eubanks said. The cheese plus ten 18-dollar bottles of Tide laundry detergent, some clothes and a candle totalled over $600.

The cheese alone was worth more than $300. Police also found marijuana inside the vehicle. The couple had their baby with them, and a family member was called to pick the child up. The couple was taken to the Catoosa County Jail and both have since bonded out. While Erika does not have a criminal history, police said Joshua was arrested in Tennessee last year for aggravated animal cruelty and malicious mischief.

With news video.