Wallet theft suspect arrested next day in same area
An Ecorse man faces a four-year felony charge after Ferndale police say he stole another customer’s wallet at a gas station store.
Randy Saulter, 37, appeared in Ferndale 43rd District Court on Monday for a brief hearing on a charge of theft in a building.
Saulter is accused of stealing a wallet belonging to a Westland man from a counter at the BP gas sta- tion store at East Nine Mile and Hilton Roads on Sept. 8.
Police said the Westland man had been in the station and left, but quickly returned after he realized he had left his wallet behind.
“He called police right after he returned and found his wallet had been stolen off the counter,” said Ferndale police Officer Jillian Mahlmeister.
Police showed up and reviewed surveillance video of the suspect at the station.
“A gas station clerk recognized the suspect as a customer who had been in the store before,” Mahlmeister said.
Investigators spotted Saulter in the same area the next day, Sept. 9, and recognized him from the surveillance video, police said.
Police said Saulter works for a custodial business.
“He works in the area,” Mahlmeister said, “and would walk to the gas station.”
Police interviewed Saulter after they arrested him and said he admitted taking the wallet.
Saulter, however, told police a different story about how he got the wallet.
He said he took the wallet by mistake and threw it on the ground as he walked away when he realized it wasn’t his, police said.
“His story wasn’t very believable to prosecutors,” Mahlmeister said, “and they charged him.”
Police said they never recovered the stolen wallet. The owner canceled his credit cards and lost a small amount of cash he had in the wallet.
Saulter’s criminal history dates back to 2002, when he was convicted in Wayne County Circuit Court for unarmed robbery.
In 2012, he was convicted of larceny in Dearborn, and three years later pleaded guilty to an attempted felony of false pretenses in Wayne County, police said, which typically involves taking money or property under false pretenses.
Saulter is free on personal bond.
Conditions of his bond prohibit him from having any contact with the Westland man whose wallet was stolen or the BP gas station where the theft happened.
He is scheduled for a preliminary examination in Ferndale 43rd District court at 2 p.m. Sept. 3.