ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. (WFLA) — A St. Petersburg woman is behind bars after police say she stole wallets, valuables and car keys from multiple lockers at a local gym.
The alleged thefts happened at the Jim and Heather Gills YMCA on 1st Avenue South. According to police, she went to the facility twice.
According to court documents, 30-year old Cyreath Marcella Moore went to the gym on Jan. 26 and stole keys and a wallet from two lockers. Investigators believe she left the facility and went to the parking lot, trying to track one of the victim’s cars down by using the key fob. After locating the car, police say she opened it and stole the victim’s wallet, then proceeded to use his credit card at a nearby Popeyes restaurant.
One of the alleged victims from that day, Sean Ortiz, says he still can’t believe what happened. He tells 8 On Your Side he parked his car, locked his valuables inside then went to the locker room and locked his car key in a locker.
When he came back to the locker room after his workout, he says he found the lock had been cut and his key was gone
“The first thing you think of is ‘did I lock it? Did I lock it? Did I lock my locker?'” said Ortiz, acknowledging he had, in fact, locked the locker. “I did everything right. I put my car key in my locker. My wallet was in my car, I put a lock on my locker. I did everything right. There was nothing I did wrong here.”
Officers arrested Moore on an unrelated theft case on Jan. 27. While investigating that case, police say they discovered numerous stolen credit cards and other stolen items.
Moore posted bond the day after her arrest on that charge.
Just a few days later, on Jan. 31, she returned to the YMCA and visited the men’s and women’s locker rooms, court documents say. In these cases, investigators say she cut locks off of locked lockers before stealing belongings.
YMCA staff members had been on alert after what happened and were watching for Moore. When she returned on Wednesday, they alerted police who came and arrested her, the court document says.
Tim Staley, the YMCA’s chief operating officer in St. Petersburg, is proud of his staff’s quick action.
“Saw that this individual was acting kind of erratic and that was an indicator,” said Staley. “So that they were able to contact authorities and luckily this person was apprehended.”
Police arrested a duo for a similar crime at the YMCA in 2019. In that case, they were targeting unlocked lockers.
Staley says it’s a concern that will be addressed.
“This has happened a couple of times unfortunately for us,” said Staley. “We’ve continued to move our members to the front desk to check in. We’re changing that again. We’re figuring out ways to reassign staff to make sure that front desk is covered.”
Moore is facing petit theft, burglary and fraudulent use of identification charges. According to the Pinellas County Sheriff’s Office website, she does have a prior criminal history with arrests for burglary, battery and grand theft.
Deputies are holding her in jail on a $30,000 bond.