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PROVIDENCE, Cache County — Police believe a man and two women from California are responsible for a recent string of baby formula theft resulting in thousands of dollars' worth of stolen merchandise.
Logan police say Selford Velcu, 49, Iolanda Velcu, 47 and Elisabeta Zatreanu, 22, may have stolen up to $10,000 worth of baby formula from Cache County grocery stores and other locations in Utah and Idaho.
The three were arrested Monday after allegedly stealing about $1,000 in baby formula a Macey's store in Providence, said Logan Police Capt. Curtis Hooley.
Police performed a traffic stop on a van matching the description given by the store and found a large amount of the product inside, Hooley said. A search of the van led investigators to a storage unit, where more than 450 cans worth anywhere from $8,000 to $10,000 were found, he said.
Earlier this month, the same Macey's location and a Macey's, Shopko and Lee's Marketplace in Logan reported baby formula worth nearly a combined $4,000 had been stolen. Police are also investigating the possibility that the group from California may have also stolen baby formula from stores in Park City, Heber City and Rexburg, Idaho, according to Hooley.
The group admitted to the theft at the Macey's store in Providence but otherwise was not cooperating with the investigation, the captain said.
Zatreanu and Iolanda Velcu allegedly both wore dresses specially designed to conceal the baby formula during the multiple thefts, which were caught on surveillance footage. The dresses hold can hold about two dozen cans of formula, Hooley said.
"These dresses look like they're homemade. There's certainly some hand-stitching done on them, so they're made for a purpose," he said.
Police still haven't identified the motive for the alleged thefts, but say the quantity stolen is a good clue that the group was passing the stolen merchandise along.
"Obviously, it was more than (for) personal use," Hooley said.
Anyone with more information about the case can call the Logan Police Department at 435-716-9300.
Contributing: Mike Anderson
