Newlyweds caught shoplifting food for their wedding reception

A newlywed couple are accused of stealing more than $1,000 of merchandise on Saturday from a supermarket that police said they intended for their wedding reception later that afternoon. The value of the stolen items totaled $1,049.26, police said.

Arthur Phillips III, 32, and Brittany M. Lurch, 22, both of Centre Hall, married Aug. 18, and scheduled their wedding reception for 5:30 p.m. on Saturday, police said. But at 2:30 p.m., Patton Township police were called to Wegmans supermarket for a report of a retail theft.

They watched the couple on surveillance cameras put items in their shopping cart, and walk out to their car without paying, according to an affidavit filed by police. Police then arrested Phillips and Lurch, who told them the items were intended for their reception.

The couple didn’t make it to the reception. Charged with misdemeanor counts of retail theft and receiving stolen property, Phillips and Lurch remain in Centre County jail in lieu of $2,500 bail.