LAS VEGAS (KLAS) — A Las Vegas man is facing charges after he allegedly stole numerous welders and other items totaling more than $11,000 over a period of six weeks and then sold them for a profit.
Adam Gilliland, 35, was arrested on March 9 during a vehicle stop after police spotted a pickup truck, recently spray painted with a mismatched license plate. The day before the arrest, Las Vegas Metropolitan police had released images from a surveillance camera of two suspects in a string of thefts at home improvement stores. One of those suspects is now identified as Gilliland.
According to the arrest report, Gilliland targeted Lowe’s home improvement stores at least nine times from Dec. 26, 2022, through Feb. 14, 2023, to steal items to resell them. The report said he stole 9 welders, 2 tools and batteries, 1 generator, and a pressure washer as well as some other items. He used the same technique during most of the thefts.
Gilliland would ask a sales associate to unlock a security case and take out an expensive tool for him to purchase and he would put it in his cart and head toward the cashier with the sales associate accompanying him. However, when he got to the cashier, he would run with the cart out of the store and put the stolen item in a white pickup truck, and drive off, the report stated.
At one store, “The associate attempts to confront Gilliland when Gilliland stated, “do not try to stop me” and reaches into his pocket as if to grab a weapon, according to the report.
A police officer who had conducted investigations involving Gilliland in the past reviewed a vehicle stop made on Gilliland in early February and confirmed it was him and he was in the same white Dodge Ram pickup that had been seen on surveillance videos at the theft scenes, the report said.
Gilliland was due to make his initial appearance in Justice Court this morning on 11 counts of burglary of a business and 1 court of participating in organized retail theft.
Police did not release information on the other suspect.