MPD: Three women caught in stolen Maxima with stolen merchandise

MEMPHIS, Tenn. — Three women were arrested Tuesday after police say they were caught shoplifting in a stolen car with a fake drive-out tag.

Australia Butler, 28, Sarah Benson, 31, and Jayla Rhoten, 21, were taken into custody outside the Family Dollar on Quince in East Memphis.

Butler and Benson were charged with theft of property, vandalism, altering or forging an auto tag, and possessing a vehicle with an altered serial number. All three were charged with possessing tools to interfere with an anti-theft security device.

Police said on Oct. 19, a white 2017 Nissan Maxima was stolen from the Sam's Club in the 7400 block of Winchester. Surveillance video showed a dark-colored Maxima driven by a woman pull next to the white Nissan and man dive into the vehicle and drive it off the lot.

Tuesday, members of the Memphis Police Department's Auto Theft Task Force, along with the Appling Farms Task Force and Bartlett Police Crime Suppression Unit, spotted the stolen white Maxima at Quince and Perkins and followed the car to the Family Dollar Store.

Police said Benson was driving the car, and Butler and Rhoten were passengers. The women were detained inside the store.

They said Benson had several items from the Family Dollar concealed inside her purse, and Butler had a generic keyfob programmed to operate the stolen Maxima in her pocket.

Officers said they also recovered a large amount of presumably stolen merchandise inside the vehicle. Police said some of the items still had security devices, and they found a large magnet to remove retail security devices on top of the center console.

Police said they also located a fraudulent City of Memphis odometer disclosure statement in the glove box. According to MPD, the paperwork is used to obtain vehicle titles and registration fraudulenty.

The Maxima had several bullet holes on the roof and was missing a piece of trim on the front passenger side. Police said the vehicle had been reprogrammed and would cost around $1,200 to reprogram it.

Benson, Butler, and Rhoten are scheduled to appear in court on Thursday.