Dem lawmaker busted for shoplifting at Connecticut Target, blames his grandma

A state-level Democrat lawmaker in Connecticut was caught shoplifting at Target and proceeded to blame the incident on being in a rush to help his grandmother in the hospital.  

On Monday, State Rep. Raghib Allie-Brennan, 33, was arrested at a Target store in Bethel, Connecticut. Authorities saw on video that he did not scan two of his items which amounted to $26.69. He was detained by security at the establishment, who told the police that he was recognized from "previous unreported larcenies," per the CT Mirror, citing a police report. 

Allie-Brennan, who was first elected in 2018, did not respond to a request for comment from the outlet, but wrote in a statement on Facebook, “I was in a rush to bring items to my grandmother in the hospital, the store didn’t have bags, and I was juggling multiple purchases." 



“While I do not have a record, I take full responsibility for the error and am working through the legal processes to resolve the matter quickly and respectfully,” he added. 

Connecticut House Speaker Matt Ritter commented on the situation in a public statement, saying, “He recognizes the high standard to which I hold our members and is taking responsibility for inadvertently leaving the Target self-checkout without scanning several items.”