A Long Island man who stuffed a bottle of cologne and a salt-and-pepper shaker down the front of his pants while shopping was busted by an alert security guard who followed him out of the store, police said yesterday.
Tomasz Poznanski, 43, of Lindenhurst, was browsing inside a T.J. Maxx store in the Sunrise Mall in Massapequa on Sunday night when the security guard noticed Poznanski squirrel the items into his trousers, said Nassau County Detective Sgt. John Fitzgerald.
When confronted and told to empty his bulging pants, Poznanski, who did not have a criminal record before the incident, struck the woman in the face and arms.
The female security officer managed to handcuff Poznanski and, along with other security guards, held him for police.
Poznanski was charged with felony assault. Fitzgerald said his actions proved the suspect was not using his brain:
“He took a simple shoplifting charge and makes it into a robbery,” said Fitzgerald. “It shows poor judgment, to say the least.”
Poznanski was arraigned on the charge yesterday before a judge in Nassau County First District Court, where bail was set at $500, despite a prosecution request for higher bail.