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Two individuals who allegedly stole thousands of dollars worth of items from Runnings in Austin made their first appearances on Monday in Mower County District Court.

Reginald Detron Hollingbird, 32, of Westchester, Illinois, and Marguerite Louise Scholz, 32, of Minneapolis have both been charged with felony theft – take/use/transfer movable property without consent. In addition, Scholz has been charged with felony financial transaction card fraud – use forged/false/fictitious card.

According to the court complaint, an Austin police sergeant responded to a suspicious activity call at 7:44 p.m. on April 29 at Runnings. The reporting party indicated that two males and a female had bought numerous batteries and drills with what was believed to be a stolen credit card and were loading the items into a U-Haul truck bearing State of Arizona license plates. The sergeant observed the U-Haul and the individuals, as well as employees, loading the items and left the scene as it did not appear a crime was being committed.

Police later returned to Runnings after being advised the suspects had stolen $6,544.82 worth of merchandise. The manager reported that earlier in the day, a black female (later identified as Scholz) and a black male (later identified as Hollingbird) came to the store and the defendant applied for a credit card in the name “Renee Gordon.” The credit card was approved and the couple then purchased $5,593.14 worth of merchandise with the credit card.

The manager said the couple then returned to the store at approximately 7:40 p.m. and got $6,544.82 worth of merchandise and were assisted by another black man and Runnings employees in loading it into the U-Haul. He said Scholz told the cashier she was going to get her credit card from her vehicle, but she did not return and the U-Haul drove away. He said that due to the theft, he believed the credit card was fraudulently obtained.

Police made contact with the black male who assisted Hollingbird and Scholz with loading the U-Haul. He told police that a black man and woman paid him $40 to help them load items into the truck.

The U-Haul was located on April 30 in the 1500 block of Seventh Avenue Northwest. Hollingbird and Scholz were inside the residence and were arrested when they came out. Hollingbird was found to be in possession of the U-Haul keys and both were identified as the suspects at Runnings. Most of the stolen items were located in the residence.

Both will appear in court again on May 14.