Children used in theft at Waterloo Premium Outlet

By John Mariani / The Post-Standard 

Parks

Junius, NY – A Clay woman, a Syracuse woman and a Rochester man used two children to help them steal items from businesses at the Waterloo Premium Outlets in the Seneca County town of Junius, county sheriff’s officials said.

Witnesses Saturday reported people acting suspiciously at the shopping center, possibly stealing items and using two children to help them do so, said Lt. Charles Maleski, speaking for the Seneca County Sheriff’s Office.

Police stopped the suspects’ car on Route 318 in Junius, a short distance from the shopping center. Inside were three adults, two children ages 6 and 5, and clothing totaling more than $500 that officials believe was stolen from two stores, Maleski said.

The adults -- Roxanne L. Parks, 28, of 2106 Cotswold Court, Clay, Marah A. Merriam, 21, of 509 Wolf St., Syracuse, and Kyeith L. Bradley, 20, of 44 Coleman Terrace, Rochester -- all were charged with two counts of endangering the welfare of a child, one count of petit larceny and one count of fifth-degree criminal possession of stolen property, all misdemeanors.

Merriam

Parks also was charged with four counts of seventh-degree criminal possession of a controlled substance, a misdemeanor, and unlawful possession of marijuana, deputies said. Bradley also was charged with a single count of seventh-degree criminal possession of a controlled substance, they said.

Bradley

All three were arraigned in Junius town court. Parks was ordered held by the sheriff on bail of $5,000 cash or $10,000 bond, while Merriam and Bradley were ordered held on $3,000 bail or $6,000 bond.

Parks had been released but Merriam and Bradley remained in custody as of early this afternoon, jail records indicate. All three are to appear in court tonight. Maleski declined to identify the children or the businesses, citing department policy against identifying crime victims.

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