A Walmart shopper who used Kool-Aid barcodes to scan for higher-priced merchandise in the self-checkout lane has been released after two weeks in jail.
Valerie Jeanne Petters, 52, of Wildwood, was released Saturday from the Marion County Jail.
She was arrested Oct. 10 after she pushed her cart to the self-checkout lane and reached into her pocket and removed two small barcodes from Kool-Aid packages. She repeatedly scanned those barcodes as opposed to the barcodes of the merchandise in her cart at the store in Summerfield. The merchandise included a hooded sweatshirt and beauty cream and had a total value of $94.32. She was arrested on a charge of theft and booked at the jail. She was released the following day.
Petters was sentenced earlier this month to 15 days in jail with credit for two days already served. She was was also placed on probation for 12 months and ordered to perform 40 hours of community service.
Peters has a criminal history.
The Waukegan, Ill. native was arrested in 2022 after hiding in a truck after she was suspected of shoplifting at Rural King in Leesburg.
