Lehigh Valley man twice makes mess of Walmart in Berks

46-year-old Whitehall resident faces criminal charges for incidents in which he allegedly poured substances onto floor

A Lehigh County man faces criminal charges as a result of two incidents in which police said he poured substances onto the aisle floors of a Walmart store in northern Berks County, apparently out of frustration that he had waited too long in line at the checkout at a different store in the chain.

Tilden Township police on Thursday charged Leonard Repp Jr., 46, of Whitehall in incidents on Jan. 14 and 20. In both incidents, they said, Repp was accompanied by a 13-year-old boy to the store off Route 61.

Repp, who is a friend of the boy’s family, was charged by summons with corruption of a minor, criminal mischief and disorderly conduct in both incidents.

What makes the defendant’s alleged actions so hard to fathom is the location of the offenses is more than 30 miles from his residence and about the same distance from the store where he told police that he had an unsatisfactory interaction with customer service representatives, Tilden Police Chief William McEllroy III said Friday.

According to investigators: In the first incident, Repp poured bleach, motor oil, dish soap, maple syrup and jam jelly onto the floor in various aisles of Walmart.

In the second incident, Repp poured bleach, pickles and hot sauce onto the floor in various aisles.

Tipsters helped police identify Repp as the suspect after Tilden police posted security camera images of the man on social media. Tilden police worked with the police departments in Whitehall and Coplay, where Repp once lived, to confirm his identify.

On Jan. 30, while speaking with an investigating officer, Repp admitted to the acts. When asked why, he said he had waited in line too long and was dissatisfied with Walmart’s customer service. He told the officer that he did not believe what he was doing was a criminal offense.

Although the earlier unsatisfactory experience occurred at an unspecified Walmart in the Lehigh Valley area, he decided to take his frustrations out on the store in Tilden.