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CHARDON -- A Warren man who was indicted by the Geauga County Prosecutor's Office in mid-August made a court appearance this week.
Steven Hudson, 42, pleaded not guilty to one charge of fifth-degree theft in front of Geauga County Court of Common Pleas Judge Carolyn Paschke on Wednesday afternoon.
The charge stems from a theft of baseball and football cards from the Bainbridge Meijer store, according to reports, although it's not the only case he's been a suspect in involving Meijer across Northeast Ohio, according to reports.
According to a Jan. 26 police report, Hudson was charged after Boardman police were called to a Walmart for a theft in progress, and employees said Hudson had entered the sporting goods section and put 12 packs of trading cards down his pants, totalling $231.
Court records show Hudson was sentenced to a year of probation, ordered to pay restitution and was banned from the store's property.
A May 20 Boardman police report detailed Hudson entering the Target at The Shops at Boardman Park and concealing four Monopoly FIFA trading cards on himself and removing seven UFC Topps from packaging and discarding the packaging, totaling $299.
Hudson pleaded not guilty, and the case was dismissed by the prosecutor upon paying the value of the products as restitution.
A May 21 Boardman police report acknowledging the previous day's arrest at the Target stated that Hudson was a suspect in 19 other thefts.
The report states that, in all of the thefts, Hudson would enter the store and select some kind of trading cards, then leave without paying.
Between March 3 and May 16, Hudson stole 172 items valued at $3,856, with 11 items totaling $381 being the largest cash value of the dates.
Hudson entered no plea in that case, and the case was dismissed by the prosecutor upon paying the value of the products as restitution.
Hudson was released on a personal recognizance bond, with the condition that he will not have contact with a Meijers store.