Man attempts to steal
TV set from Walmart

By Jon Mayhew
Lincolnton
Authorities arrest a Mooresville man at the Lincolnton Walmart after he tried to walk out of the store Thursday with a television set.

Detective Sgt. Matt Painter found Tuan Quoc Tran, 32, at the Subway restaurant in the shopping center.

Tran had taken a television set off the shelf and tried to leave the store when an employee noticed the receipt's date was four days off.

"He then threw the set down and left the store on foot," said Painter.

Officer Billy Burgin filed the initial report in the case, which was obtained by The Carolina Scoop Thursday night.

After locating Tran, authorities searched his vehicle and discovered a vacuum cleaner that had been stolen. Officers found a receipt for a vacuum that did not match the one in Tran's vehicle.

Police returned the stolen vacuum to the store and several employees told authorities they remembered seeing the suspect in the store.

Tran was transported to the Lincoln County Magistrate's Office by Sgt. Willie Vaughn on felony charges of obtaining property by false pretenses and attempting to obtain property by false pretenses.

Magistrate J. Bates gave Tran an $8,000 secured bond before the suspect was taken to the Lincoln County Jail. His first appearance on the charges is set for March 19, 2010.

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