Crime & Safety

Man Nabbed for Trying to Swipe Fireworks from Palmer Store

Allentown resident left two kids in car as he tried to steal fireworks from Giant in Palmer Township, court records say.

An Allentown man left two young children in his illegally parked car as he tried to steal fireworks from the Giant supermarket in Palmer Township Saturday afternoon, according to court records.

Kiet Minh Tran, 43, of 446 Hanover Ave., formerly of Palmer Township, is facing charges brought by Palmer of felony retail theft; two counts of endangering the welfare of children, also a felony, and a lesser charge of leaving an unattended child in a motor vehicle.

Tran had been convicted of shoplifting at the same supermarket on three previous occasions, according to the arrest affidavit. This time, Tran was caught in the act by Michael Eddinger, a Giant loss prevention officer, the affidavit says.

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According to the affidavit:

  • Eddinger watched Tran enter the store, take fireworks from a display and walk to aisle 11. Once there, Tran took a plastic bag out of his pants, put the fireworks into the bag and then walk out of the store.
  • Eddinger followed Tran out of the store to his car, which was parked in the “no parking, fire zone” in front of the store, with two young children sitting inside.
  • Eddinger told Tran that he needed to come back inside. Tran then threw the bag of fireworks to the ground, got in his car and drove away. Eddinger made note of the license plate.
  • Palmer Township police traced the plates to Long Huynh, 309 Carbon St. Police visited and Huynh identified the man in surveillance pictures taken at Giant as her son. However, Huynh refused to tell police her son’s name.
  • A check of criminal records showed that Tran had previously lived at 309 Carbon St. and has three prior convictions for retail theft at the same Giant – one in 1988, one in 1999 and a third in 2006.

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