Man Lights Shopping Cart Full Of Fireworks To Cover His Heist

A New Jersey man is behind bars after he sparked fiery panic inside a Maryland Walmart, which he used in an attempt to cover up a brazen jewelry heist he was committing.

Police say 36-year-old Anthony J. Rhodes was taken into custody in New Jersey in connection to an arson and theft that took place at a Walmart two states away last month.

Investigators on the case say they have video captured of a masked suspect loading a grocery cart with boxes of fireworks, which he then set on fire with camping fuel in the kid's clothing section of the store.
When the fireworks started going off, customers and staff quickly fled the store, but Rhodes stayed behind and stole multiple jewelry pieces worth a total of nearly $10,000.

@wmar2news The arsonist used camping fuel and fireworks from the Walmart store’s shelves to start the fire prompting an evacuation as he then cleared out the jewelry counter, and disappeared on a motorcycle with no tags. For all of his planning, investigators say the masked suspect left a potential clue to his identity. “When he actually sets the fire, he removes his jacket exposing that Jefferson University Baseball tee shirt,” said Master Deputy State Fire Marshal Oliver Alkire, “That gave our investigators just a little bit of a clue on just who this person is.” #crime #maryland #localnews #news ♬ original sound - WMAR-2 News

After the fire was put out, the damages to the store - damage to the store itself and all of the destroyed inventory - are estimated to be nearly $10,000,000.

That's like doing $1000 of damage to steal a $1 candy bar.

The shirt that Rhodes was wearing helped officers track him down. He was wearing a Jefferson University Baseball T-shirt, a mask and a baseball hat. He has no connection to the university, but it still helped track him down.

36-year-old Anthony J. Rhodes is facing several charges, including first-degree arson and manufacturing an explosive device. He is being held in a New Jersey correctional facility but is going to be extridited to Maryland.